


The Sum of Our Choices: The Last Olympian

by TheTimeTraveler24



Series: The Sum of Our Choices [3]
Category: Magnus Chase and the Gods of Asgard - Rick Riordan, Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan, The Heroes of Olympus - Rick Riordan, The Trials of Apollo - Rick Riordan
Genre: Book 5: The Last Olympian (Percy Jackson), F/M, Gen, M/M, Time Travel, Time Travel Fix-It, someone says it
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-08
Updated: 2020-09-08
Packaged: 2021-03-06 03:02:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 37
Words: 75,504
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25776325
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheTimeTraveler24/pseuds/TheTimeTraveler24
Summary: Maybe it's not always about trying to fix something broken. Maybe it's about starting over and creating something better.A special group of individuals are drawn together for a reason. They might not see it yet, but they are the only ones who have the power to change their destiny. They'll face opposition from the gods along the way and sometimes things won't work out the way they want. But this group is special. Their choices just might be the key to everything.WILL SOLACE doesn't want to lose another person he cares about. He doesn't want to replace anyone either.PERCY JACKSON faces a few too many choices than he'd like to make.ALEX FIERRO isn't sure about the plan for the future. Not everyone can be saved, but it's not fair if they don't even try to save them.NICO DI ANGELO has one job to convince his father to aid the demigods.ANNABETH CHASE is dreading the part she has to play in this war.MAGNUS CHASE doesn't understand the prophecies and why they say Percy's choice results in his death.The final battle is here and their mission is to defeat Kronos and save as many lives as they can. Easier said than done.
Relationships: Alex Fierro & Clarisse La Rue, Annabeth Chase & Magnus Chase, Annabeth Chase & Magnus Chase & Alex Fierro & Percy Jackson, Annabeth Chase & Percy Jackson, Annabeth Chase & Percy Jackson & Grover Underwood, Annabeth Chase & Rachel Elizabeth Dare, Annabeth Chase & Thalia Grace, Annabeth Chase/Percy Jackson, Bianca di Angelo & Nico di Angelo, Clarisse La Rue/Chris Rodriguez, Hades/Persephone (Percy Jackson), Luke Castellan & Annabeth Chase & Thalia Grace, Magnus Chase & Alex Fierro, Magnus Chase & Nico di Angelo & Alex Fierro, Magnus Chase & Will Solace, Magnus Chase/Alex Fierro, Nico di Angelo & Alex Fierro, Nico di Angelo & Hades, Nico di Angelo & Percy Jackson, Nico di Angelo & Will Solace, Nico di Angelo/Will Solace, Paul Blofis/Sally Jackson, Percy Jackson & Tyson, Rachel Elizabeth Dare & Alex Fierro, Rachel Elizabeth Dare & Percy Jackson, Silena Beauregard & Clarisse la Rue, Silena Beauregard/Charles Beckendorf
Series: The Sum of Our Choices [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1781341
Comments: 222
Kudos: 261





	1. A Not-So-Pleasant Vacation to Philadelphia (Will)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Welcome back to your regularly scheduled The Sum of Our Choices chapter update. There was supposed to be another chapter for Nico di Angelo and the Quest to Save the Stupid Idiots, but I ended up rewriting Chapter 8 before I posted that last night. Which meant that chapters 9 and 10 need to be rewritten and I haven't gotten around to doing that. Which is fine because I get to post this now which will conclude the PJO book portion of the series.

IF IT WAS UP TO WILL TO DECIDE, he would have sent anyone  _ but _ his siblings and the Ares cabin on the stupid mission. Unfortunately, the ones who decided on missions and who would go on them were Chiron and the head counselors. And Will was not a head counselor.

The night before the mission, Michael gathered them all together in the cabin.

“We’re going on a mission with the Ares cabin tomorrow,” he told them.

Austin choked. “Tomorrow? You’re just telling us this  _ now _ , Michael?”

Michael sighed. “I’d have told you earlier, but Chiron suspects there might be a spy. We don’t know who it is or even if there is one.”

“Where are we going?” Kayla asked.

“Philadelphia,” Michael answered. “Some of Luke’s demigods are there.” He bit his lip. “Chiron said no one has to go that doesn’t want to go. We’re going to be fighting people we know probably.”

Will hated Philadelphia with a burning passion. If Michael and Chiron were giving him a way out of this mission, he should be jumping at the chance. Yet… if he  _ did _ go, maybe, just maybe, he could fix the outcome of the mission for the better.

If he could just prevent the chariot debate from escalating between Michael and Clarisse, that could save so many lives in the long run.

“I’m going,” Will said. “Someone has to make sure you guys don’t bleed out.”

His sister, Alice, placed a hand over her heart. “Ouch,” she said. “Glad to know you think so highly of us, Will.”

“As I am so often reminded, you heroes need healers too,” Will grinned.

There was a knock on the doorway and Will looked over to see Nico standing there.

“Di Angelo,” Michael nodded.

Will had taken Nico’s advice to talk calmly with Michael. Things had settled down, but Michael still avoided Nico if given the choice.

“Hey, Nico,” Kayla said.

“I just came to say good luck,” Nico said awkwardly. “With the mission, I mean. And…” he pulled something out of his pocket. It looked like a dog whistle. He held it out to Will. “Here. Annabeth looked into the whistle Daedalus gave Percy to call Mrs. O’Leary. I had a few made.”

Will took the whistle. It was freezing cold and he almost dropped it. “Thanks, but why is it-”

“Stygian ice,” Nico said with a small smile. “Should have warned you. Just… if something happens, use it.”

Will could think of one particular reason why he might want to use it, but there had only ever been a few people he had told about what happened on this mission. What had happened over a year before this mission in fact.

* * *

_ It was a few days before his twelfth birthday. Will was outside at his mom’s house in Texas. She had left a few minutes ago to go to the store to buy cake mix. _

_ Suddenly, a voice said, “I’ve been looking for you.” _

_ Will jolted and spun around to see a tall boy with brown hair and green eyes. “Who are you?” he asked nervously. _

_ The boy twirled a gold sword. “A half-blood. Like you. Son of Apollo, right? You’re the one who can’t shoot.” _

_ Will wasn’t an idiot. He’d kept his bow with him and his quiver full of arrows. _

_ “I can shoot,” he said, hands inching towards his bow. “Who are you?” he repeated. _

_ “Alabaster Torrington,” the boy answered easily. “Son of Hecate, if you were wondering.” _

_ Will recognized the name. “You went missing. People were worried about you. You and Chris Rodriguez disappeared around the same time.” _

_ Chris Rodriguez, Will knew, had left to join Luke. If Alabaster had left around the same time as Chris, there was a pretty likely chance that he had also decided to join Luke. And that meant, Alabaster was working for Kronos. _

_ “They were worried?” Alabaster snorted. “That’s cute. If they were so worried, where’s my mother’s cabin? That’s the thing about the gods. They only care about the Twelve Olympians, but all the rest can rot for all they care. Kronos has promised us recognition after he overthrows the gods.” His eyes gleamed. “He can also reward us now.” _

_ Will finally grabbed his bow and he nocked an arrow. “Why should I care?” _

_ “Oh please. We both know you can’t hurt me with that,” Alabaster chuckled. “And you should care very much, Will. Kronos can give you the skill you wish for. Perfect bullseyes, right? As much skill as, if not more than your brother Michael and Lee? He’ll grant you that much and more if you join our cause.” _

_ “I would never join him,” Will spat. “So what if I can’t get a bullseye? I’ve gotten better over the years and I’ve got two of the best brothers to teach me. I don’t need a genie. I won’t fight for Kronos.” _

_ “You don’t have to fight,” Alabaster said. “Kronos requires information too.” _

_ Will’s anger exploded. “You want me to spy on my family? I will never betray them like you betrayed them! You and Luke and Chris and all the others! You all had people who thought of you like family at camp, but you betrayed them. Go away. Now.” _

_ Alabaster shook his head. “You’ll regret this, Will.” _

* * *

Will shook himself out of his memories. He gave Nico a smile. “If something happens, I’ll use it. Promise.”

Nico nodded slowly. “Right. Night,” he said, waving to the rest of them as he left.

“That was nice of him,” Kayla said with a meaningful look at Will.

“Yeah,” Will agreed. “Super nice. Almost  _ friendly _ ,” he said pointedly.

* * *

They woke up early in the morning. Will helped situate his younger siblings who would  _ not _ be going on this mission in the infirmary. He left Magnus in charge and made sure they all knew that any serious injuries would be treated by Magnus, while minor burns and cuts and scrapes could be tended to by the younger Apollo kids.

“Relax,” Magnus said as Will went over the instructions for the fifth time. “I can handle this and your little siblings are perfectly capable. You guys are only a few hours away. If anything goes wrong here, I will get Nico or Mrs. O’Leary to shadow travel and get you or Michael or Kayla or someone.” He gave Will a look. “Got it?”

“Sorry,” Will said with an apologetic smile. “This whole mission thing is just… I’m just nervous. Thanks for helping out, Magnus.”

“I don’t mind,” Magnus shrugged. “It’s kinda nice to help out here.” He pushed Will. “Now go! You’re going to make everyone late and trust me, Clarisse is not going to like that.”

* * *

It took over two hours to reach Philadelphia from Camp Half-Blood. When they finally came to a stop, Clarisse stood up at the front of the bus.

“There’s a group of monsters and rogue demigods here that are guarding a supply of weapons and supplied for Kronos,” she said. “We’re going to destroy those monsters and take those supplies for ourselves. Yew, I want a couple archers at the tops of these buildings. If they can pick off a few monsters, I can lead a charge without raising alarm. Any questions?”

Will had to bit his tongue to keep from asking about who had the claim over whatever they might find.

Michael and Kayla volunteered to go atop the buildings. Will offered to go with them, but since he was one of the best healers, Michael wanted Will to stay on the ground with the big group.

Everything was going well until the door to the storage supply exploded when they were ten feet away from it. Will and the others were thrown back by the blast. No one was seriously hurt, but Clarisse looked furious.

“Cowards!” she shouted. “Ares!”

The rest of her cabin echoed the cheer: “ARES!”

They charged into the building. Will was about to follow, when there was movement in the smoke off to his right. Alice noticed it.

“Will, come on!” she hissed, already moving towards it.

“Alice,” Will protested, but she was already gone. He sighed and took off through the smoke after her.

He could find Alice anywhere, but Will knew she was somewhere around here. He drew back an arrow and looked around, waiting for someone or something to jump out.

“Hi, again,” Alabaster’s voice said from behind Will.

The voice was loud in the silent streets and Will almost shot his arrow in shock.

“You,” Will said, eyes narrowing.

“You remember me,” Alabaster smiled. “Will, wasn’t it?”

Will kept his bow trained on Alabaster. “I’m not joining you.

“That’s a shame,” the son of Hecate said. He drew his golden sword from nowhere. “We’ll be in New York by the end of the week. Not too late to join the winning side, Will.”

“I  _ am _ on the winning side,” Will said. “You’re on the losing side.”

Alabaster snorted. “The gods are divided. Poseidon is fighting a losing battle to Oceanus and Hades hids in his palace. The Titans are united. We have a whole cruise ship at our disposal and-”

“WILL!” Alice shouted. She sent an arrow flying between him and Alabaster.

Alabaster turned a furious look on Alice. A thin red line was visible on his nose. He raised his sword, and Clarisse’s spear rose to meet it.

“Daughter of Ares!” Alabaster said in surprise. His surprise quickly melted into a smug look. “How’s Chris Rodriguez these days?”

Clarisse growled and jabbed at him with the electric end of her spear. “Erre es korakas!” she screamed.

“Come on!” Alice yelled, dragging Will away. She frowned. “Why weren’t you doing anything? He could have killed you!”

“He tried to recruit me a while ago,” Will said. “He was just-”

“ _ WHAT? _ ” Alice shrieked. “You didn’t say  _ yes _ ?”

Will shook his head wildly. “No way! Look, he told me some information I think we can use when we get back to Camp.”

Alice looked torn between being upset and intrigued. “Come on.”

“Don’t tell Michael,” Will blurted. “About him trying to recruit me.”

Alice gave him a long look. “I won’t tell Michael. Yet.”

“Will!” Michael called in relief. He hurried over. “Couldn’t find you. You okay?”

“I’m good,” Will assured him. “But I think Luke’s sailing for New York in that ship. One of the demigods said they’d be in New York by the end of the week.”

Michael cursed. “I’ll let Chiron know. Where’s Clarisse?”

“Here,” Clarisse said gruffly. She looked irritated. “Hecate’s kid. Used the Mist against me to get away. They’re retreating.”

Michael grinned. “Excellent. Check it out,” he said gesturing to a chariot tethered to a couple pegasi behind him. “Cool, huh? Some of Luke’s guys were using it, but we took it off their hands,” he cackled joyfully.

“Let’s get out of here,” Alice said nervously. “Chiron will need to know what Will heard. Come on.”

* * *

Clarisse, Kayla, and Alice stayed behind to load some of the weapons from the supply into the chariot, so when Will, his siblings, and the Ares cabin arrived back at Camp and Chiron didn’t see the three girls, he looked worried.

“What happened?” the centaur asked.

“Clarisse, Kayla, and Alice should be here soon,” Michael told him. “They stayed back to load a flying chariot with weapons to bring back here.” He gestured to Will. “Will has to tell you something though.”

“One of the demigods there told me that they’ll be in New York by the end of the week,” Will explained. “I think he meant Luke’s boat.”

Chiron’s face grew stoney. “Michael, please go gather the rest of the head counselors. We’ll discuss this matter with them.” He looked at Will. “Don’t tell anyone else about this, Will. You understand why.”

“The spy,” Will said quietly.

Not that only telling the head counselors would do much good considering the spy was one of the head counselors.

Chiron nodded. “Precisely.”

Clarisse, Kayla, and Alice had returned sometime during their chat with Chiron because when Michael and Will reached the cabin area, Clarisse and a few of her siblings were glaring at Alice and Kayla.

“What now?” Michael shouted in exasperation. “Clarisse!”

“Tell your sisters to stop being stupid,” Clarisse yelled at Michael. “Our raid, our chariot!”

Michael blinked. “ Your chariot?” he asked incredulously. “We took the chariot from Luke’s guys, not you! It’s our chariot!”

Will groaned. “Guys-”

“Who led this mission?” Clarisse said. “Ares Cabin! If it was our mission, then that means it’s our stuff!”

“I didn’t see a single one of your siblings helping us fend off Luke’s guys in order to get the chariot!” Michael argued. “Apollo Cabin did all the work to get the chariot!”

“That’s because we were busy killing monsters and defeating the enemy!”

“And we took a flying chariot away from them! Now Luke can’t use that!”

Annabeth and Alex appeared next to Will.

“Whoa,” Alex blinked. “Like I was kidding when I said make a drama out of your lives. What happened?”

“The flying chariot,” Will grimaced.

Annabeth closed her eyes. “I am leaving in a few hours to go on a date, I do not need this right now.” She took a deep breath. “Okay. I’m going to go cut this off before it gets any worse.” She marched towards the two screaming head counselors.

Alex grinned at Will. “I love this place.”

“HEY!” Annabeth yelled over Michael and Clarisse. “Shut up!”

Will winced as the shouting got louder.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I just got my copy of Paola Santiago and the River of Tears. This'll be the first Rick Riordan Presents book that I've gotten, so I'm excited. I'd like to start it soon, but I'm reading three different books at once already. I'm terrible at just trying to read one at a time, haha. This will probably make that four though.
> 
> Anyway, you may recognize some of the text in this chapter if you've read Always Towards the Sun. It's my take on what happened in the books through Will's eyes. If you haven't read it, no worries! You don't need to, it's not necessary reading. I tried to get the gist of the whole Will and Alabaster plot line from Always Towards the Sun across in this chapter, but if it's still confusing, basically in August before Titan's Curse takes place, Will went home to celebrate his birthday with his mom and Alabaster approached him about joining Kronos. Will says no, but Alabaster crops back up on the Philadelphia mission. Alice is also an OC daughter of Apollo that is in Always Towards the Sun as is Lydia who will be popping up eventually.


	2. Cruising With Horseflies (And Explosives Too)   (Percy)

EVERYTHING WAS GOING GREAT until Blackjack showed up.

For the whole summer, Chiron had been very insistent on Percy staying out of Camp and enjoying his mortal life. However, it was now a week before his sixteenth birthday, and it was getting to crunch time.

So Percy had his mom drive him back to Camp. So far, the ride had been much more pleasant than the first ride to Camp when he was twelve. Not a monster in sight and no thunder clouds to send lightning at him.

Naturally, that was when Blackjack landed on the road in front of them.

Percy’s mom slammed on the breaks. The car shuddered to a stop inches from Blackjack.

_ Hey, boss _ , Blackjack said.  _ Nice car! _

Percy sighed and got out of the car. “Blackjack. What’s going…” he trailed off, seeing who was riding the pegasus. “On,” he finished. “Hey, Beckendorf.”

Beckendorf waved. “‘Sup, Percy.”

Percy turned back to the car. “Mom…”

She nodded sadly. “You have to go.”

“I have to go,” Percy agreed. “I’ll call you later. I promise.”

His mom gave him a sad smile as she turned the car around to head back home. When the car was out of sight, Percy cleared his throat.

“You can come out now.”

Alex Fierro suddenly appeared standing next to Blackjack who yelped, almost throwing Beckendorf off his back.

“Alex?” Beckendorf asked.

“Alex Fierro, she and her, that is me,” Alex said. She patted her clothes. “Like them? This is the  _ only _ time you’ll get me to wear them though.” She wasn’t dressed in her usual pinks and greens, rather, she wore a black shirt and black pants with a black ski cap covering her hair.

Percy glanced at Beckendorf. “I asked Alex to follow you. Us three are now the only ones who know Alex is coming with us.”

Beckendorf’s eyes widened in realization. “If there  _ is _ a spy, they won’t be able to tell Kronos about Alex.”

“Exactly,” Alex said. She eyed Percy. “But I’m not carrying you, Jackson.” She shifted into an eagle and perched on a branch nearby.

Percy shook his head and climbed up onto Blackjack behind Beckendorf.

* * *

It was almost dark by the time they reached the Princess Andromeda. Percy’s stomach twisted in knots. The amount of times he’d been on this ship was too many. Most of those times, he’d nearly died. Now, he was about to blow up the ship.

He hadn’t been entirely truthful about why he’d brought Alex along. Alex was here for the sole purpose of making sure she and Beckendorf made it back to Camp Half-Blood alive. Sure, Kronos didn’t know she was coming, and that was a bonus Percy was willing to take. It was just that the real reason he asked her to come was to keep Beckendorf alive.

Blackjack dove down towards the boat at top speed. Alex the eagle followed them. They landed on the lowest deck. Percy and Beckendorf slid off Blackjack as Alex returned to her human state.

_ Good luck, boss _ , Blackjack said.  _ Don’t let ’em turn you into horsemeat!  _ With that, he flew off into the night.

Percy took out his pen and uncapped it. Riptide sprang to full size. He looked at Alex. “Anyone comes this way, you turn into something small and get out of the way. Remember what I told you.”

Alex glanced at Beckendorf who was busy looking at a picture of his girlfriend, Silena Beauregard. She nodded reluctantly. Percy knew Alex really didn’t like the ‘save Beckendorf and leave Percy behind’ plan, but the way Percy saw it, this was their chance to save Beckendorf. He was going to take it.

Beckendorf led the way to the engine room. The door was locked, but Beckendorf pulled some chain cutters out of his bag and split the bolt like it was made of butter.

Inside, a row of yellow turbines the size of grain silos churned and hummed. Pressure gauges and computer terminals lined the opposite wall. A telekhine was hunched over a console, but he was so involved with his work, he didn’t notice the three demigods.

Quick as a whip, Alex lashed out with her garrote and the telekhine exploded into dust.

“One down,” Beckendorf said. “About five thousand to go.” He opened his bag full of jars of Greek fire. “Percy, get the console,” he said. “Alex, you help me with the turbines.” He tossed them each a roll of duct tape.

They quickly got to work. The room was hot and humid, and in no time they were drenched in sweat. Alex had to roll up her sleeves and take off the black ski cap.

“Ugh, times like these I can’t wait to go to Blitzen’s Best,” Alex grumbled. She wiped the sweat from her forehead and then tilted her head. “Do you hear something?”

Percy paused. The sound of feet pounding on metal steps reached his ears. He cursed.

“Now what?” Alex asked.

“I’ll distract them,” Percy sighed. “I’ll meet you at the rendezvous point.”

Alex grabbed his arm. “Wait. I’ll go too. The horsefly prank. You take care of the monsters headed for us, I’ll cause a distraction on the other end of the ship.” She held up her hands. “No one will see me.”

The sound of footsteps grew louder. Percy let out a breath. “Fine. Go.”

Beckendorf looked like he wanted to argue, but since he was the only one who could set the bombs, there wasn’t much he could do to stop them. “Good luck,” he said.

Percy charged out the door. Alex wasn’t there, but he thought he heard a buzzing noise fly past his ear. He didn’t know what the horsefly prank was, but he hoped it was good.

Half a dozen telkhines were tromping down the stairs. Percy cut through them with Riptide faster than they could yelp. He kept climbing – past another telkhine who was so startled he dropped his Li’l Demons lunchbox. Percy left him alive to raise the alarm and hopefully get his friends to follow Percy rather than head towards the engine room.

Based on the monstrous roars that followed Percy, he was succeeding in that. He burst through a door onto deck six and kept running until he reached the promenade where he froze.

Apparently the horsefly prank was enough to cause mass chaos because that was the only word Percy could think of that would describe the scene before him.

There were monsters fighting each other and half-bloods yelling at them to stop.

Alex appeared next to Percy. “Get to the rendezvous point. I’ll go find Beckendorf.” She shrunk down into a small horsefly and flew off back the way Percy had just come.

With the promenade in such disarray, Percy dove between various monsters, cutting them down while they were distracted. This actually helped Alex’s trick because now the monsters and half-bloods were shouting about their comrade getting vaporized.

Percy ran for the stairs.

In the elevator foyer on deck eight, a couple of dracaenae slithered across Percy’s path. They held spears and weighted nets.

“What isss thisss?” one said. “A prize for Kronosss!”

Percy ripped a model of the ship off it’s pedestal and threw it at the dracaena. The model smacked one in the face and sent her flying into her friend.

“Get him!” she screamed.

The chaos Alex had caused down on the promenade must have been resolved because Percy could hear orders being given to capture him.

As Percy was running up the stairwell, a kid charged down. He looked like he’d just woken up from a nap. His armour was half on. He drew his sword and yelled, ‘Kronos!’ but he sounded more scared than angry and he couldn’t have been more than twelve.

Percy stepped inside his strike and grabbed his wrist, slamming it against the wall. His sword clattered out of his hand.

“Get off this ship,” Percy told him. “You and the other demigods. Now!” Then he shoved him down the stairs and sent him tumbling to the next floor. Percy kept climbing.

He burst outside onto the main deck. The whole upper ship was eerily deserted. Percy debated finding another route to the helipad where the rendezvous point was, but he was already committed.

Halfway across the deck, someone spoke. “You’re late, Percy.”

Percy glared up at the balcony above where Kronos in Luke’s body stood. “Kronos.”

“We’ve been expecting you for days,” Kronos said. “Come, bow before me.”

“I’ll pass,” Percy muttered.

Laistrygonian giants filed in on either side of the swimming pool as if they’d been waiting for a cue. Demigod archers appeared on the roof above Luke. Two hellhounds leaped down from the opposite balcony and snarled at Percy. Within seconds, he was surrounded.

_ Alex, please be with Beckendorf _ , Percy prayed. He leveled a glare at Kronos. Time for Annabeth’s favorite strategy. Talking.

“So is Luke still in there?” Percy asked casually. “Can he hear me?”

Kronos’ face rippled.

Percy smirked. So Luke _ could _ hear him. Good to know.

“Will you fight me now, Percy?” Kronos taunted.

Percy shrugged. “No. Supposedly that’s supposed to happen on my birthday. It’s a big decision to make. I think I’ll wait until then.”

“I would love to see the terror in your eyes when you realize how I will destroy Olympus,” Kronos agreed.

“Typhon, right?” Percy asked. “The gods are busy fighting him right now. My dad’s fighting the old sea gods. You’ve divided them.”

Kronos’ golden eyes widened. “How do you-”

“One of your demigods isn’t very tight lipped,” Percy grinned. “He spilled a little too much to one of  _ my _ friends. Plus, I’ve got a girlfriend who’s pretty smart. You remember Annabeth, don’t you?”

Kronos’ face seethed with rage. “Nakamura!” he shouted.

Ethan pushed through the crowd. “Success, my lord,” he called. “We found him just as we were told.” He clapped his hands and two giants lumbered forward, dragging Beckendorf between them. He had a swollen eye and cuts all over his face and arms. His armor was gone and his shirt was nearly torn off.

“No!” Percy yelled.

Beckendorf met Percy’s eyes. He glanced at his hand like he was trying to tell Percy something. Percy looked at Beckendorf’s wrist expecting to find the watch which was the detonator. It wasn’t there.

Slowly, Percy started to put the pieces together.

“We found him amidships,” one of the giants said, “trying to sneak to the engine room. Can we eat him now?”

“Soon,” Kronos said, scowling at Ethan. “Are you sure he didn’t set the explosives?”

“He was going towards the engine room, my lord.”

“How do you know that?”

“Er…” Ethan shifted uncomfortably. “He was heading in that direction. And he told us. His bag is still full of explosives.”

Beckendorf sent Percy a cocky smile that looked very out of place to anyone who knew Beckendorf. But to someone who knew Alex Fierro, that smile was very appropriate.

He didn’t know where the real Beckendorf was, but while Kronos was busy with Ethan, Alex made a W with her fingers and raised them to her chin. The only ASL Percy knew. Water.

Kronos hesitated. “Open his bag,” he ordered.

One of the giants ripped the explosives satchel from Alex’s shoulders. He peered inside, grunted and turned it upside down. Panicked monsters surged backwards. But what fell out were a dozen cans of peaches.

Percy could see Alex struggling not to burst out laughing.

“Did you, perhaps,” Kronos said angrily, “capture this demigod near the galley?”

Ethan turned pale. “Um-”

“And did you, perhaps, send someone to actually CHECK THE ENGINE ROOM?”

Ethan scrambled back in terror, then turned on his heels and ran.

Kronos turned towards Percy with a crooked smile. “You’ll have to excuse my incompetent help, Percy Jackson, but it doesn’t matter. We have you now. We’ve known you were coming for-”

“For weeks,” Percy interrupted. “Blah, blah, blah. I know. You have a spy in our camp. Tell me something I don’t know.”

He glanced over at Alex. One of the giants had his hands around her neck, but that wouldn’t matter once Alex shifted into something else.

Kronos glared at Percy. “Drop your sword and surrender to me, or your friend dies.”

Percy shrugged. “Okay.” He glanced at his sword in his hand. “On second thought…” he threw his sword like a javelin at Kronos. Riptide bounced harmlessly off his chest like Percy knew it would, but it startled Kronos.

At the same time, Alex disappeared much to the astonishment and surprise of Kronos and his army. A hummingbird flew out of the grasp of the giant that had been holding her hostage.

Percy pushed through a crowd of monsters and jumped off the side of the ship – towards the water thirty metres below. Next to him, the hummingbird dove with him, morphing into a dolphin on the way down.

Percy reached out for Beckendorf’s location. He willed the currents to carry both Beckendorf and him and Alex the dolphin far, far away.

Two hundred yards from the ship they found Beckendorf sitting atop a hippocampus. He raised his hand to his watch and triggered the detonator.

The explosion shook the world. Heat seared the back of Percy’s head. The Princess Andromeda blew up from both sides, a massive fireball of green flame roiling into the dark sky, consuming everything.

“We did it,” Percy said stupidly. Then he blacked out.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I did look up what the ASL for water was. Three fingers like a "W" and you touch it to your chin.
> 
> I also had a mini heart attack as I was doing a last minute proofread before posting just now. I was worried that I had overpowered Alex in making her able to shift into other people. Then I remembered that Alex did this before in Hammer of Thor to become Sam. I really need to reread the Magnus Chase books. For more reasons than one really. I had read so much fanfic with Magnus, Alex, and the PJO/HOO and KC characters (most notably the Percy Did What? reading the books series, very good, check that out) that I was pretty much reading the books with an anticipation for Alex's character. I rushed through it. I loved the story, but I definitely need to go back and reread. Now, writing one of the future chapters for this, I'm struggling to get Alex's personality right.
> 
> Anyway, it feels so good to be back posting this again! Honestly, I started this series with no particular direction in mind except the fact that (for some reason) I wanted the characters to acknowledge they're changing things and fixing things, but never actually think of it as time travel. Don't ask. I really have no idea what I was thinking. But now, I love my little fix it project and having Magnus and Alex in the PJO world. Plus I get to write Percabeth, FierroChase/Beatrice, and Solangelo. So I mean, it's a win-win-win-win, right?


	3. What's So Great About the Great Prophecy? (Percy)

IF THERE WAS ONE THING Percy hated more than monsters, it was demigod dreams.

He dreamed he was in a dark palace at the top of a mountain. The palace of the Titans on top of Mount Othrys, otherwise known as Mount Tamalpais, in California. The main pavilion was open to the night, ringed with black Greek columns and statues of the Titans. Torchlight glowed against the black marble floor. In the center of the room, an armored giant struggled under the weight of a swirling funnel cloud—Atlas, holding up the sky.

Two other giant men stood nearby over a bronze brazier, studying images in the flames.

"Quite an explosion," one said. He wore black armor studded with silver dots like a starry night. His face was covered in a war helm with a ram's horn curling on either side.

Percy had never actually encountered this Titan before, but someone he knew had. Rather, someone he  _ would _ know  _ would be _ encountering him soon.

"It doesn't matter," the other said. This Titan was dressed in gold robes, with golden eyes like Kronos. His entire body glowed. He was similar to Apollo, god of the sun, except the Titan's light was harsher, and his expression crueler.

Unfortunately, Percy  _ did _ know this Titan. Hyperion.

“The gods have answered the challenge,” Hyperion said. “Soon they will be destroyed.”

The images in the fire were hard to make out: storms, buildings crumbling, mortals screaming in terror.

"I will go east to marshal our forces," Hyperion said. "Krios, you shall remain and guard Mount Othrys."

The ram horn dude, Krios, grunted. "I always get the stupid jobs. Lord of the South. Lord of Constellations. Now I get to babysit Atlas while you have all the fun."

Under the whirlwind of clouds, Atlas bellowed in agony, "Let me out, curse you! I am your greatest warrior. Take my burden so I may fight!"

"Quiet!" Hyperion roared. "You had your chance, Atlas. You failed. Kronos likes you just where you are. As for you, Krios, do your duty."

"And if you need more warriors?" Krios asked. "Our treacherous nephew in the tuxedo will not do you much good in a fight."

Hyperion laughed. "Don't worry about him. Besides, the gods can barely handle our first little challenge. They have no idea how many others we have in store. Mark my words, in a few days' time, Olympus will be in ruins, and we will meet here again to celebrate the dawn of the Sixth Age!" He erupted into flames and disappeared.

"Oh, sure," Krios grumbled. "He gets to erupt into flames. I get to wear these stupid ram's horns."

The scene shifted. Now Percy was outside the pavilion, hiding in the shadows of a Greek column. A boy stood next to him, eavesdropping on the Titans. He had dark silky hair, pale skin, and dark clothes—Nico di Angelo, the son of Hades.

He looked straight at Percy, his expression grim. “We’re running out of time. You need to decide what you’re going to do now. Beckendorf might only be the first of many lives we save.”

Percy wanted to breathe a sigh of relief. Beckendorf had made it out alive. But before he could respond to Nico, the dream faded and he woke up.

* * *

Percy coughed and sputtered. He opened his eyes to see a mop of green hair above him.

“Welcome back to the land of the living,” Alex said. “You passed out on us.”

Percy grinned weakly. “Not what I thought would happen. You two all good?”

“They’re great,” Connor said. “So am I, thanks for asking.” He frowned at Alex. “What were you doing with them? I thought just Percy and Beckendorf were going.”

Beckendorf’s face turned stoney. “We’ll talk about that later. At the counselor meeting.”

Connor nodded uneasily.

Together, they climbed the sand dunes. Alex and Connor helped support Percy until the nectar could finish helping him. A few hundred yards away, people were already streaming toward them, smiling and excited.

Connor and Alex helped Percy to sit at the Poseidon table in the dining pavilion as they waited for everyone to gather.

Chiron galloped into the pavilion first, which was easy for him since he's a white stallion from the waist down. His beard had grown wilder over the summer. He wore a green T-shirt that said MY OTHER CAR IS A CENTAUR and a bow slung over his back.

“Percy!” he said. “Beckendorf! Thank the gods.”

Annabeth and Magnus ran in right behind him.

“Where were you?” Magnus asked Alex.

Alex pointed to Percy and Beckendorf. “Making sure they didn’t get themselves killed.”

Annabeth breathed a sigh of relief. “Gods, Alex. We thought you were missing.”

“My bad,” Percy said, wincing under the twin looks from the Chase cousins. “I asked Alex to come and not tell anyone.”

Annabeth let out a breath. “Well, at least you’re all okay. What happened?”

“The ship’s blown up,” Beckendorf grunted.

“Kronos isn’t destroyed though,” Percy said.

“It’s still a major blow to his forces,” Chiron said. “You succeeded in weakening him.”

Silena Beauregard pushed through the crowd.

“Charlie!” she shouted, throwing her arms around Beckendorf.

Beckendorf hugged her back. “I’m okay.”

Chiron cleared his throat. “Perhaps we should continue this discussion at the Big House. Counselors!” he called.

“Chiron,” Percy said.

The centaur looked at him.

“It’s time,” Percy said. “I… I need to know the prophecy.”

Chiron's shoulders sagged, but he didn't look surprised. "I've dreaded this day. Very well. Annabeth, we will show Percy the truth—all of it. Let's go to the attic." He looked at the counselors. “Wait for us in the rec room.”

* * *

By the time Percy, Annabeth, and Chiron entered the rec room with the prophecy, it was an all out war of words. Michael and Clarisse stood toe-to-toe, screaming at the top of the lungs at each other.

Clarisse was in full battle gear, yelling at Michael who was about a foot shorter than her.

"It's our loot!" Michael yelled, standing on his tiptoes so he could get in Clarisse's face. "If you don't like it, you can kiss my quiver!"

Around the ping-pong table, counselors stifled their laughter.

“SHUT UP!” Percy shouted. “Stop arguing!”

Clarisse glowered at him. “Tell Michael not to be a selfish jerk.”

“Oh, that’s perfect, coming from you,” Michael shot back.

“I said ENOUGH!” Percy yelled.

The room fell silent.

Percy crossed his arms. “You two have been arguing nonstop about a  _ stupid _ chariot. In case you haven’t noticed, we’re about a week away from the end of the world. My sixteenth birthday is coming up which means that the big fight against Kronos is  _ also _ coming up. If you two are busy worrying about who’s chariot it is, no one is going to be able to rely on you to do anything good to save the world.” He looked each of them in the eyes. “Until we’re no longer in a fight for our lives,  _ no one _ gets the chariot. Now can you please just work together for a few more days?”

Clarisse didn’t say anything. Her eyes flickered between Michael and Percy before she let out a breath and returned to her seat.

“Okay,” Michael said reluctantly.

“What happened on the mission?” Katie Gardner asked, looking at Percy and Beckendorf. “I thought it was just the two of you, but then you came back with Alex.”

“I asked Alex to come on the mission,” Percy said. “And I asked her not to tell anyone. I figured that if we do have a spy, if only Alex and I knew, the spy wouldn’t be able to tip off Kronos.”

“It was a pretty good idea,” Beckendorf spoke up. “After I finished rigging the bombs Alex caught up to me. She got me to the water and took on my appearance. She fooled all the monsters  _ and _ Kronos.” He shook his head. “I owe her my life.”

Silena gasped and covered her mouth. “Charlie would have died?”

Percy couldn’t meet her eyes. “I… I don’t think there would have been any way to get him off the boat if Alex hadn’t been there.” He looked at Chiron. “There  _ is _ a spy. Kronos confirmed that.”

Maybe he was fudging the truth, but there was actually a spy at Camp Half-Blood.

“We’ll find them,” Annabeth said. She glanced at Chiron. “Chiron?”

“Yes,” Chiron nodded. “Percy? The prophecy please.”

Annabeth handed Percy the roll of parchment that contained the Great Prophecy.

Percy unrolled it and began reading. “ _ A half-blood of the eldest gods / Shall reach sixteen against all odds _ ,” he said.

A slight chill crept up Percy’s back. Hearing this prophecy… reading it to the counselors… it honestly scared him. Percy didn’t really know what to expect.

“ _ And see the world in endless sleep _ ,” he continued. “ _ The hero’s soul, cursed blade shall reap _ .”

Percy really tried not to let that line bother him, but still, Riptide grew heavy in his pocket. He knew his sword had a pretty tragic history, starting with Zoe Nightshade giving the blade to Hercules.

Next to him, Annabeth took a sharp breath. Her hands flew to touch the dagger at her side.

“ _ A single choice shall end his days _ ,” Percy finished. “ _ Olympus to preserve or raze _ .”

The room was silent. Finally, Connor said, “Raise is good, isn’t it?”

“Yeah, except this is raze as in destroy,” Percy corrected. “R-a-z-e.”

Everyone looked at Percy like he was already dead. He didn’t really appreciate that.

Chiron closed his eyes as if he were saying a prayer. "You see now, Percy, why we thought it best not to tell you the whole prophecy. You've had enough on your shoulders—"

“I appreciate it,” Percy interrupted. “But I’m not dead yet, so can you all stop acting like I am?”

“The cursed blade,” Clarisse said. “That sounds like the scythe. So can’t we just find it and destroy it?”

“No way,” Michael said, shaking his head wildly. “I mean, I’d like to prevent a cursed blade from reaping souls, but you cannot cheat prophecies. Our history is full of demigods trying to interpret or cheat prophecies. Their lives  _ never _ end well.”

“He’s right,” Percy said. “The gods tried to cheat this prophecy, but here I am. I think we should be more focused on Kronos. He’s planning to destroy Olympus.”

“We already know that,” Pollux pointed out. “That’s the whole point of this war.”

“No, I mean, he was on that boat to New York for a reason,” Percy said. “The gods are all busy with Typhon. Nobody's guarding Olympus. While I was unconscious, I had a dream. Hyperion is coming east to get ready.”

“What about the spy?” Michael scowled. “We don’t know who it is.”

“Someone who knew Luke well,” Connor said. He glanced at Annabeth warily.

Katie frowned. “We shouldn’t accuse each other. That’s what Kronos would want us to do. We have to trust everyone here if we want to beat him.”

“We need to find this spy before we plan something else,” Michael argued. “This spy almost cost us Percy, Beckendorf, and Alex.”

Silena had silent tears rolling down her cheeks.

“Kronos is always going to be one step ahead of us if we don’t find this spy now,” Michael continued.

“Not anymore,” Silena said. She tossed something onto the table.

Silver glinted up at them. It was a scythe charm on a silver chain.

Percy blinked in surprise. He hadn’t expected Silena to give herself up. Then again, her boyfriend was alive and well thanks to Percy’s idea to bring Alex along. If Alex hadn’t been there, the information she fed Kronos would have resulted in Beckendorf’s death.

Clarisse stared at Silena in shock. “You… Silena?”

Silena looked away. “He told me I would save lives. I… I just didn’t want anyone getting hurt. I tried to back out, I swear, but he said he would tell everyone.” She took a shaky breath. “But you could have died,” she said to Beckendorf, “and it would have been  _ my _ fault. Charlie, I’m so,  _ so _ sorry.”

Beckendorf didn’t say anything for a while. Finally, he handed Silena a hammer.

Silena took the hammer gingerly. She stared at the silver charm for a moment. Then, she swung the hammer. The charm cracked in half and there was a small dent in the table.

There was silence.

“I… I’m sorry,” Silena said, standing up. “I should go. I’ll send someone else to represent Aphrodite.”

“Wait,” Percy said. He gave Silena a sad look. “You… aren’t planning on telling Kronos anything else, are you?”

Silena shook her head.

“Then you should stay,” Percy told her.

Silena snapped her head up to look at him. “What?”

“Luke threatened to tell us to drive us away from you,” Percy explained. “Don’t let him win, Silena.”

Silena stood there for a while before sitting back down.

“Are there any other spies?” Annabeth asked to break the silence. “Did Luke… Did Kronos tell you anything?”

Silena shook her head. “Just me. And, no, I don’t know what he was planning. It wasn’t like that. I just provided the information. He didn’t tell me anything. I’m sorry, I wish I could be more helpful.”

“That was plenty helpful,” Clarisse said firmly. “Now we know we can trust everyone. We know that everyone at Camp right now is on our side.” It went without saying that everyone included Silena now too.

Percy looked at Chiron. “How long until Typhon reaches New York?”

Much to Chiron’s chagrin, Percy had been keeping up to date on the statue of the gods fight against Typhon recently. Despite the centaur’s best efforts, Percy hadn’t been able to stay away from Camp and enjoy his mortal life. There had just been too much to do. Too much to plan for.

Chiron sighed. “Unless the gods can stop him? Five days. As you know, most of the Olympians are fighting him.”

“Except my dad,” Percy sighed. “He’s fighting Oceanus.”

“Leaving Olympus virtually unguarded,” Travis said.

Connor shook his head. "If Typhon gets to New York, it won't matter who's guarding Olympus."

“Something else is going to happen,” Percy said. “Something worse is coming.”

Silena shook her head. “What could be worse than Typhon? Percy, I don’t think Kronos planned for you to blow up the ship. He had the information to stop you. I… I mean, I  _ told _ him all the details. If Alex hadn’t been there, you guys would have been caught and stopped.”

_ Or Beckendorf would have sacrificed himself _ , Percy thought. But he didn’t say anything. He had no way to prove anything.

"Maybe you're right," he said.

"Well," Chiron said, "I think that's enough for one night."

The war council adjourned.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I went back and forth about this. I wasn't sure if I wanted Silena to give up the info that she was the spy or not, but in the end I decided that with Beckendorf surviving, Silena would tell them.
> 
> Also... I will be uploading an alternate version of this chapter on Riordanverse Fic Outtakes. Originally, this was written as a different character's chapter.


	4. Alex Does Something Stupid (Alex)

NEEDLESS TO SAY, Magnus was not amused that Alex had decided to galavant off on some top secret mission with only Percy knowing about it.

“Why didn’t you tell me?” Magnus asked Alex, looking slightly crushed.

Alex tapped her fingers on one of the tables in the dining pavilion. “I  _ wanted _ to tell you, but Percy wasn’t even going to tell Annabeth. I think he was just worried about someone, anyone, overhearing the plan.” She shook her head. “It was a pretty good plan when you think about it.”

“No, no, no, it was a  _ horrible _ plan,” Magnus protested.

“We saved Beckendorf,” Alex pointed out. “I mean, isn’t that the point of all of this. Save as many people as we can?”

That  _ was _ the goal. They’d all agreed on that much. Even if it bothered Alex more than she cared to admit.

“That includes all of us too,” Magnus said. “What good is it going to do anyone if we’re all dead?”

Alex crossed her arms. “We’re going to die anyway. What does it matter if it happens now while we’re doing some good?”

Before Magnus could answer, she glanced around. “Where’s di Angelo?”

“Will said he’s in California,” Magnus answered, giving Alex a look. “Don’t change the subject. What do you mean ‘what does it matter’?”

“I don’t know, Magnus,” Alex said irritably. “Maybe I mean that we have a whole list of people who we’re trying to keep alive, but for some reason our names aren’t on that list!” She blew out a breath. “I don’t want to die, okay? I don’t want to orchestrate my own death. I really don’t want to orchestrate yours either! It’s just… it’s not fair that we can’t even save ourselves. We have to just be okay with putting our lives on the line to save other people even though when it comes down to it, no one is going to be trying to save  _ us _ .” Alex cast her eyes down at the table once she had finished.

Finally, it was out there. Something Alex had honestly been struggling with from day one. They were saving everyone else, but no one was there to save them.

Magnus blinked. “Oh.”

“Yeah,” Alex said sarcastically. “ _ Oh _ .”

“Look, Alex,” Magnus said. “I don’t plan on dying, so I really hope you aren’t either.”

Alex’s head snapped up to look at him. “What?”

Magnus shrugged. “My cousin is smart. She’s a genius actually, but we are our own people and we can do whatever we want with our own lives. She’s not infallible though. I should have been living with my mom until this year at the very least, but that’s not what happened.” He shook his head. “We’re changing a lot already. Maybe… maybe we can change this too.”

“Never would have pegged you as a rebel,” Alex muttered. She gave Magnus a wide grin. “I say let’s do it. We just have to survive a war first.” She placed her hands on Magnus’s shoulders and looked him in the eyes. “Good luck, Maggie.”

* * *

When the head counselors were done with their meeting, a pretty somber atmosphere descended across the camp. Even Travis and Connor Stoll seemed to be finding it hard to make jokes. Granted, they had been finding it hard to make jokes due to the current going ons of the Greek world, but even then they had managed to keep a smile and lighten the mood when needed.

But now they seemed really down. Whatever had happened at that meeting had sucked the life right out of them.

“Who kicked  _ your _ puppy?” Alex finally asked them at dinner.

“Percy read us the prophecy,” Connor said after a moment.

“And we took care of the spy problem,” Travis added. He didn’t elaborate on that.

Alex didn’t bother asking about the spy. Chiron had probably made sure no one would breathe a word about the spy’s identity, and she had a feeling the Stolls would be sticking to that.

“And?” she asked. “What’s the big deal about the prophecy?”

“It pretty much says Percy’s going to die,” Connor said flatly. “So, you know, doesn’t matter if we win or lose because Percy loses either way.”

Alex and Magnus exchanged looks. This hit a little too close to what they had discussed earlier.

“Prophecies are complicated,” Alex pointed out. “I mean, two years ago there was that prophecy that said Nico’s sister would reign again, but she’s currently dead in Elysium. What did the prophecy say?”

Travis sighed. “ _ A half-blood of the eldest gods / Shall reach sixteen against all odds _ .”

“ _ And see the world in endless sleep _ ,” Connor continued. “ _ The hero’s soul, cursed blade shall reap _ .”

“ _ A single choice shall end his days / Olympus to preserve or raze _ ,” Travis finished.

Magnus closed his eyes. “Well that’s great. Please excuse me while I go have a chat with my cousin.” He marched off towards the Athena table.

Alex frowned at the Stolls. “So that’s just it? Some prophecy says that Percy’s going to get his soul reaped and everyone is ready to give up?”

“We aren’t giving up,” Connor said, “but it’s a little hard to be positive when someone’s going to die and you can’t do anything about it. In the end, it won’t matter how hard we fight to stop Kronos.”

“You don’t have to listen to some stupid prophecy,” Alex argued. “Destiny is nothing more than the sum of our own choices. I get that all the Greek heroes got their prophecies from some Oracle and they followed that to a T, but…” she trailed off.

Connor frowned. “Alex?”

Alex stood up. “There’s something I have to do,” she said distantly. “You just gave me a brilliant idea. I’ll be right back.”

She took off at a sprint towards the Big House.

Maybe the Greek demigods were confined to listening to their Oracle’s every word, but Alex wasn’t Greek. She was Norse and she was a child of Loki. A child of the trickster himself. The honorary god of mischief and artifice. Of magic and fire. Of lies, serpents, and stories.

Maybe the rest of Camp Half-Blood had to follow the prophecy, but Alex didn’t have to.

With that in mind, she began her climb into the attic where the Oracle of Delphi was stored.

* * *

The Big House attic was officially creepy.

There were lots of trophies stored there. The trophies ranged from dented shields to pickled monster heads in jars. Each had a little plaque naming the trophy and who had taken it and when.

Alex glanced at a curved bronze sword. It wouldn’t be doing much battle anytime soon. The blade was bent so badly it looked like the letter M and the green stains indicated poison used to cover it. It would be hard to straighten the blade and avoid getting poisoned in the process.

“Scimitar of Kampê,” Alex read, “destroyed in the Battle of the Labyrinth, 2008.”

The Battle of the Labyrinth the previous summer had been exhilarating and terrifying at the same time. Getting to fight monsters in a life or death situation normally wouldn’t have been at the top of Alex’s favorite moments list, but in that moment, things had almost felt like they were back to normal again.

But Alex wasn’t here for a trip down memory lane. She came for answers. Answers that the Oracle would hopefully be able to give her.

Over by the window, a shriveled female mummy sat on a three-legged stool. The mummy was dressed in a tie-dyed dress and tufts of black hair clung to her skull. Glassy eyes stared out of her leathery face.

Alex marched up to the mummy. “Alright, miss Oracle of Delphi. That prophecy everyone is so worried about, the Great Prophecy or whatever, does it apply to me? If I get involved, does the prophecy change? Because that prophecy says a friend of mine is going to die. I don’t want that happening.”

The mummy didn’t move. Her eyes just continued to stare blankly out of their sockets. She just sat there like she was dead. Which apparently she was.

Alex growled in frustration. “Come on! You can’t give me a hint? Look, I don’t know who else I could possibly get answers from!  _ You’re _ the Oracle, aren’t you? Just tell me what I need to know! What am I supposed to do to prevent Percy Jackson from dying?”

Still, the Oracle said nothing.

“Answer me you stupid mummy!” Alex said angrily. “How do I stop the prophecy from coming true? How do I save-?”

It was like someone had blown an icy breath across the room. The temperature dropped and suddenly a green mist swirled around Alex’s feet. The Oracle’s eyes glowed a bright green.

Four figures appeared in front of Alex. She inhaled sharply and stepped back.

Mallory Keen was there with her bright red hair. Alex was reminded of Rachel Dare. The two girls were similar in more than just appearance. Rachel was still new to the mythological world, but she had the same fire in her eyes that Alex always saw in Mallory’s.

Next to Mallory stood Halfborn Gunderson with his wild Viking beard.

Beside them was Thomas Jefferson Jr. with his rifle and bayonet in hand. As usual, he was dressed in his Civil War uniform.

Lastly, Samirah al-Abbas. Alex’s half-sister stood there in full Valkyrie armor and her green hijab. She looked deadly and ready for battle with her axe in hand.

But it wasn’t really them. It  _ couldn’t _ be them. For one, they all had glowing green eyes like the Oracle. For two, when they spoke, their voices were raspy and harsh.

“ _ The son of Poseidon’s choice draws near, _ ” Mallory said.

“ _ Foreseen by the mortal who sees clear _ ,” Halfborn continued.

TJ looked at Alex. “ _ The hero’s fate to remain unchanged. _ ”

“ _ But the traitors’ lives can still be saved _ ,” Sam finished.

The green mist disappeared along with the four figures of Alex’s friends.

The Oracle was still perched on her stool like nothing had happened. Like Alex hadn’t just received a prophecy of her own.

Alex took a shaky breath. She looked at the glassy eyes of the Oracle as she backed up towards the door and descended the ladder.

* * *

“Travis and Connor said you just ran off,” Magnus said when Alex returned to the dining pavilion. “What happened?”

Alex shook her head. “It… it’s nothing. Um, what did you talk to Annabeth about?”

Magnus frowned. “Are you sure? You look, I don’t know. You just look kinda… freaked out?”

“What did Annabeth say?” Alex pressed.

Magnus sighed. “Fine. She told me not to worry about it. But I can tell she’s worried about it.” He glanced back towards his cousin. “I can’t help but think that maybe the prophecy is the same, but the meaning changed.”

“That’s definitely a possibility,” Alex murmured. “We need to talk. Right now. Privately.” She pulled Magnus up out of his seat and out of the dining pavilion.

“What’s going on?” Magnus said as soon as they were far enough away from the dining pavilion. “Is this something to do with wherever you ran off to?”

Alex nodded. “I…” she let out a breath. “I went to see the Oracle.”

“You what?” Magnus gapped. “Why?”

“Think about it,” Alex said. “We’re not…” she glanced around and then lowered her voice, “Greek. We’re Norse.”

Magnus nodded. “So what?”

“So why should a prophecy given by a Greek oracle limit us?” Alex said. “I think that the Greeks might be confined to whatever the prophecy says, but since we’re Norse, we’re the wild cards.”

“That’s a good theory, Alex,” Magnus said sadly, “but there’s one problem with that. The prophecies do confine us.  _ I _ was part of the prophecy Percy got for the quest to save you and Artemis.”

“Which is why I’m starting to agree with your same prophecy, different meaning idea,” Alex said. “When I was up there, the Oracle gave me a prophecy. Which means that the prophecy involves me at least.”

Magnus gave her a worried look. “What did the Oracle say?”

“ _ The son of Poseidon’s choice draws near _ ,” Alex recited. “ _ Foreseen by the mortal who sees clear / The hero’s fate to remain unchanged / But the traitors’ lives can still be saved _ .”

Magnus took it all in. “Okay. Okay. So the first line is pretty obvious. Percy’s going to make a choice like what the Great Prophecy talks about. The second line is a little less clear. A mortal is going to foresee Percy’s choice? A mortal with twenty twenty vision?” He shook his head. “Nevermind, um, so the hero’s soul is still going to be reaped by a cursed blade. Not great. But hey! We can save the lives of a bunch of traitors.”

Alex rolled her eyes. “The point is that our presence here is going to affect the outcome of this war and by default or extension, the Great Prophecy. I’m sure Annabeth has already thought about it, but we really need to talk about it. Especially since we’re marching into battle on Percy’s birthday.”

“I love fighting monsters on people’s birthdays,” Magnus muttered. “Birthdays, weddings, all the happy events, you know?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So it occurred to me that I have made at least one joke about this. I believe it was in Titans Curse when Annabeth told Magnus he wasn't allowed to die until he turned sixteen. But given that they've saved Castor and Beckendorf at this point and they're planning to save more lives down the line, that kind of leads one to believe the goal is to minimize the casualties of the mythological world's... issues. Casualties that include Magnus and Alex.
> 
> I dunno about you guys, but I'd be pretty uncomfy with planning my own "heroic, Valhalla worthy" death. I mean, first you gotta die with a weapon in your hand, but you also have to be doing brave stuff. Then, you can't just let yourself get killed, like it has to be believable.
> 
> An argument could be made that neither has to die in order for the Sword of Summer events to happen. Magnus and Alex just have to find a way to befriend Sam, Blitz, and Hearth to help them out. Hammer of Thor events are still manageable without them becoming einherji. Ship of the Dead is where it gets a little more complicated if they've never met Floor 19.
> 
> Either way, how they've been going along is pretty much sticking to the rough outline of what happened before, but just fixing certain things along the way. And that would include both Alex and Magnus dying and going to Valhalla. So no real effort has been made to figure out how to not do that. And I realized that while writing this story, so I had to give Alex and Magnus this conversation.
> 
> Also, the whole prophecy doesn't apply to Norse thing was something I thought I was so smart for thinking of until I remembered that the prophecy in Titan's Curse applied to Magnus who is, in fact, a Norse demigod. Who knew? So yeah, the Greek prophecies can apply to Norse demigods.
> 
> Anyway, on a lighter note, it's Shark Week! Super excited. I love Shark Week and I watch it every year. Most of it is stuff played every year, but the new episodes are kind of cool. There was one I watched that was studying the lack of human activity due to COVID and how the sharks are behaving since then.
> 
> Ahh, sorry, I promise I was not paid to promote Shark Week, I just really like sharks.
> 
> Hope you enjoyed this chapter!


	5. Percy Has A Rotten Day (Percy)

THE NEXT MORNING WASN’T off to a great start in Percy’s opinion.

It started out waking up from a dream about Rachel Elizabeth Dare. A demigod dream about Rachel that is.

Despite what they had told Rachel, she had offered to extend an invitation to Percy, Annabeth, Nico, and Alex to go with her and her family to vacation with them at St. Thomas. Alex had declined on account of Mr. Dare probably recognizing Alex as the missing probably assumed dead child of Mr. Fierro. Nico told her quite bluntly that he’d rather not go to the beach. Percy and Annabeth, however, had told her that with the war almost here, they wouldn’t be able to afford to be too far away.

Rachel had been disappointed, but she had agreed that preventing the Titans from destroying the world was slightly more important than a vacation with friends.

Still, in the dream, it was pretty easy to tell that Rachel had really been hoping for some friendly companionship on her family vacation.

Despite the fact that Percy was kind of expecting it, the drawings in Rachel’s room were chillingly accurate. One was a picture of Luke when he was about nine years old. The other was the Empire State Building with lightning all around it and a crowd of battle ready demigods at the base of the building.

Of course, after he saw that was when he woke up.

So Percy was left to try and enjoy breakfast despite the dream.

His day didn’t improve when after breakfast, Alex and Magnus told him and Annabeth that Alex had received a prophecy from the Oracle the night before.

"Good morning, my dude," Alex said, plopping down across from Percy at the Poseidon table.

Magnus sat down besides Alex and Annabeth came over to sit next to Percy.

"I am... a dude... my dude," Alex continued dramatically. "And Annabeth," he added.

Percy had to take a minute. They were still in the dining pavilion which was surprisingly private when it wasn’t meal time.  His elbows were propped up on the Poseidon table and his hands covered his eyes. He let out a long sigh.

“Good morning to you too,” he mumbled. Percy sat up and looked at Alex. “Okay. I have a question. Why are you so...” he waved a hand around.

"I want to know that too," Magnus muttered. "Considering what we have to tell you."

Annabeth gained a serious look. "What's wrong?"

"Does something have to be wrong?" Alex asked.

"In my experience, yes," Percy sighed.

Alex huffed. "Fine. I went to see the Oracle last night."

Percy blinked. "You what? Why would you think it's a good idea to see the Oracle?"

"I didn't say it was a _good_ idea," Alex protested. "But," he shrugged, "I h ad a theory. Norse demigods might be wildcards in the Greek world. But considering we can still be in prophecies and receive prophecies, I’m thinking that might not be it.”

“What did the Oracle say?” Annabeth asked.

“ _ The son of Poseidon’s choice draws near _ ,” Alex recited. “ _ Foreseen by the mortal who sees clear / The hero’s fate to remain unchanged / But the traitors’ lives can still be saved _ .”

Percy officially hated that prophecy.

Magnus frowned. “So, um, I don’t know, maybe showing a little more concern about the fact that you’re about to die would be appropriate right now?”

Annabeth pursed her lips. “Percy isn’t going to die, Magnus. The prophecy doesn’t name the hero.”

“Then who  _ is _ going to die?” Magnus asked.

Annabeth closed her eyes. “Please don’t ask me this right now, Magnus,” she said quietly. “I’m working on it. I just… I need a little more time to figure something out. There’s still time to save-” she cut herself off. Annabeth couldn’t meet anyone’s eyes as she left the dining pavilion.

Percy stood up. “I’m supposed to go with Annabeth for inspection.”

“I thought the heads each took turns with that,” Magnus said in confusion.

“Annabeth has inspection,” Percy explained. “I have to sort through the reports for Chiron. Chores are much more bearable when you do them with other people.” He hurried off after his girlfriend.

* * *

They started the cabin inspection at the Poseidon cabin. The whole summer Percy had been going between Camp and home at moments notice, so the cabin wasn’t exactly the cleanest.

Annabeth made a face as she used the end of her pencil to pick up an old pair of running shorts. “Three out of five, Percy.”

“I’ve had more important things on my mind than cleaning a cabin,” Percy protested.

“No excuse,” Annabeth shrugged, marking the score down.

Percy skimmed through the stack of reports as they walked. There were messages from demigods, nature spirits, and satyrs all around the country writing about the latest monster activity. It wasn’t anything he didn’t already know.

New demigods were rare these days. Too many monsters were roaming around, so demigods were either getting attacked or recruited to Kronos. Satyrs were being attacked too, or having more difficulty than usual getting the new campers to Long Island.

They visited the Aphrodite cabin, which of course got a five out of five. The beds were perfectly made. The clothes in everyone's footlockers were color coordinated. Fresh flowers bloomed on the windowsills.

“Great job as usual, Silena,” Annabeth said.

Silena nodded silently.

“Are your siblings giving you a hard time?” Percy asked.

“You’re sweet for asking, Percy, but no,” Silena said quietly. “No one’s said anything, so, you know… no one knows except the counselors. I keep debating what to tell them.” She gave them a sad look. “I don’t know if I  _ want _ to tell them.”

“Hey,” Annabeth reached out and gave her a reassuring squeeze. “Don’t worry about it. You don’t have to say anything you don’t want to. You are an amazing person, Silena. Even telling just the counselors was incredibly brave.”

“Thanks, Annabeth,” Silena whispered.

Percy smiled at her. “See you later, Silena.”

As they crossed the commons area between the cabins, Percy could tell that despite his efforts the previous day, tensions were still running high between Ares and Apollo cabins.

No one was dive bombing anyone in a flying chariot at least or shouting in rhyming couplets.

“I swear,” Annabeth muttered. “If they go back to fighting, I’ll kill Michael and Clarisse.”

“I guess we’re all just used to Ares and Apollo getting along,” Percy frowned.

Annabeth nodded. “Well, Lee and Clarisse weren’t friends or anything, but they could sit down and work together at least. Of course, Will’s got this sort of calming aura like everything is fine and happy, so he has no problem getting along with anyone. Michael… Michael and Clarisse have never gotten along as long as I’ve been at Camp. They kind of remind me of you and Thalia actually. Remember when I said you two would either be the best of friends or the worst of enemies?”

“Yeah,” Percy grimaced. “I’d rather be friends with Thalia than enemies.”

He scanned more reports and they inspected a few more cabins. Demeter got a four. Hermes and Hephaestus got a two. No surprise there. Hermes was crammed with demigods and Hephaestus had spare machinery lying around.

Finally they got to Athena's cabin, which was orderly and clean as usual. Books were straightened on the shelves. The armor was polished. Battle maps and blueprints decorated the walls.

“Three out of five,” Percy said, suppressing a grin as he pointed to a few notebooks with paper sticking out at odd angles.

Annabeth gave him a dirty look. “Four out of five.”

“Yeah, um, I didn’t think you’d want us to touch those notebooks,” Malcolm said.

Probably a good idea. The last time someone moved Annabeth’s notes, she had started threatening them at knifepoint. Percy wasn’t sure if it was just because of the information in those notes or if Annabeth just didn’t want anyone to touch her stuff. He was leaning more towards both of them.

“I’m staying here until you finish inspection though,” Malcolm said, looking deadly serious.

Percy looked away awkwardly. “Right.” He shuffled through a few more reports.

“Four out of five,” Annabeth decided.

“Come on!” Percy protested. “You gave me a three out of five.”

“For dirty laundry,” Annabeth said matter-of-factly. “And since it’s only a few notebooks, I give myself a four.”

“Three and a half,” Percy suggested.

“I’ll give you a zero and then you can get all the chores,” Annabeth said.

Percy stopped protesting.

“Let’s go finish your reports and get back to Chiron,” Annabeth said. She tugged Percy out of the cabin.

After a few moments of sifting through the reports, Annabeth stopped walking.

“What’s up?” Percy asked.

“My dad wanted to take me to Greece this summer,” she said distantly. “I told him I couldn’t because of the war, but… that’s not it. I mean, it’s part of the reason, but not the real reason. I guess I just always imagined that if I went back to Greece it would be with you and there wouldn’t be any life ending events happening.”

“We will go,” Percy promised her. “I’ll take you. I’ll get special permission to fly and everything so that we get there safe and quick.”

Annabeth laughed. “You think Zeus will give you permission to take me on a date via airlines?”

“After everything we’re going to do for the gods, I hope so.” He stared at one report which was written on a maple leaf.

“It’s from Coach,” Percy said, a faint smile on his face. It quickly fell as he read the letter. “Oh. It says, ‘Dear Grover, Woods outside Toronto attacked by giant evil badger. Tried to do as you suggested and summon the power of Pan. No effect. Many naiads’ trees destroyed. Retreating to Ottawa. Please advise. Where are you? —Gleeson Hedge, protector.'" He frowned. “Where  _ is _ Grover? He-” Percy’s eyes went wide. “Crap.”

Annabeth gave him a sour look. “We both forgot about our best friend.”

“It’s okay!” Percy said, waving his hands around. “Look. Um, I’ve been thinking about Nico’s plan.”

Annabeth raised an eyebrow. “Nico’s completely idiotic and unnecessary plan?”

“That’s the one,” Percy nodded with a wince. “I’m going to do it. So Nico and I will just go get Grover on the way and then send him back here.”

“Does this have anything to do with Alex’s prophecy?” Annabeth asked quietly.

“ _ The hero’s fate to remain unchanged _ ,” Percy said. “ _ But the traitors’ lives can still be saved _ . Of course it’s about the prophecy. When Nico spoke to me in my dream, uh, after I blacked out, I mean, he said that we could save more than just Beckendorf. Maybe this is how we can save everyone.”

“We are about to be facing a three day battle, Percy,” Annabeth hissed. “What if Nico’s plan doesn’t work? What if you can’t get the curse? You’ll die and then you won’t be able to help us.”

“ _ Or _ it does work and I save lives!”

Annabeth gave him a sad look. “You’ll do this whether I want you to or not, won’t you?”

Percy shrugged and sent her a small smile. “Yeah. I have to.”

“You know, I said you were a coward,” Annabeth said suddenly. “After you first heard the prophecy. But you aren’t. You don’t run from danger, you run toward it. And as much as I hate it when you do that, I wouldn’t change it.” She blinked back tears. “You’re a real hero, Percy. Don’t… don’t die on me, Seaweed Brain.”

Percy pulled her close. “I won’t. Promise.” He pulled back with a smile. “Hey, what do you think happens if you swear on the Styx not to die and then you die? Do you come back to life?”

Annabeth hit him. “You’re ridiculous. Now,” she wiped her eyes and stood up straight, “where’s Nico?”

“That is a good question,” Percy said. He glanced around, hoping to see Nico step out of the shadows. “He  _ was _ just in California last night. I wouldn’t blame him if he didn’t show up until later.”

* * *

That night, they got to burn their shrouds.

Percy hadn’t really been expecting any shroud burning, but then again, he and Beckendorf had returned from a kind of quest mostly unharmed. Alex too, although no one had known she was going with them.

Percy’s shroud was made of long sea green silk and embroidered with a trident. Beckendorf’s was made of metal links like chainmail. Alex, much to his delight, received a pink and green checkered shroud.

“It would have been a lot nicer if we knew you were going,” Annabeth explained to Alex.

Athena cabin was typically responsible for weaving the fabrics while each hero’s cabin was responsible for decorating the shroud.

Alex waved her off. “It’s fine. Pink and green. It’s perfect.”

“Travis and Connor wanted to add fireworks to it,” Magnus muttered.

Alex shoved him. “You didn’t let them? That would have been so cool.” He looked thoughtful. “We should start this when we get to the Hotel.”

“Shroud burning to the death?” Magnus asked. “Why?”

“Why not?” Alex shrugged.

“Sounds potentially hazardous to staying alive,” Magnus said. “Probably a bunch of fire hazards too. We might burn the place down.”

“That’s all part of the fun,” Alex grinned.

It was times like these where Percy was reminded that his lifespan would likely be as short as your average demigod, and he only had to put up with the mythological shenanigans until he died. Thought, knowing his luck, he just jinxed himself.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I assume that they didn't burn Percy's shroud in Last Olympian because Beckendorf actually died. Because in Lightning Thief for example, Percy and Annabeth get to burn their shrouds after coming back alive. So now that no one died, I have Percy, Beckendorf, and Alex burning their shrouds.
> 
> Also... must make a note of this shroud burning to the death idea.
> 
> Also, also... poor Percy. One day he will escape the life of danger and quests and end of the world battles. One day.


	6. Mom Bless You (Percy)

PERCY WENT DOWN TO THE sword fighting arena after the burning of the shrouds.

When he got there, a wall of darkness slammed into him with a loud “WOOF!”

The next thing he knew, he was flat on the ground with a huge paw on his chest and an oversized Brillopad tongue licking his face.

“Heel, Mrs. O’Leary!” someone called.

After a few minutes, Mrs. O’Leary calmed down and got off Percy. He sat up, drenched in dog drool.

Nico di Angelo appeared over Percy. He held out a hand to help him to his feet which Percy gladly took.

“Sorry,” Nico said.

Percy waved him off. “It’s fine. Uh, how are you?”

Nico yawned. “I just got back. Few hours ago maybe? I was just waiting until I looked a little more awake.”

“I thought about the plan,” Percy said hesitantly. “I think that you might be right. This is our best chance to save everyone.”

Nico looked relieved. “Good. I’ve been looking for an excuse to visit my father and get him to help.”

“You haven’t been down there?” Percy asked.

“Not since December,” Nico said with a grimace.

Percy couldn’t blame him. Last December hadn’t exactly been his ideal way to spend the holidays. It had started with Persephone bringing him, Nico, and Thalia to the Underworld in order to help recover the stolen Sword of Hades.

Had it just been Percy and Nico, they would have gone straight to the Lethe to cut off Ethan and Iapetus, but with Thalia being there, they had no choice but to follow the magic flower Persephone had given them to guide them to the sword.

Iapetus… That was one subject Percy didn’t know how to feel about.

The once very stab-happy Titan fought Percy on the banks of the Lethe and subsequently was thrown into the Lethe. Percy renamed him Bob and now the Titan was much nicer, but it felt wrong.

“We should say hi to Bob,” Percy said quietly.

Nico gave him a look. “I’ll figure it out, okay? Don’t worry about him.”

Percy nodded distractedly. “Right. About California… were you  _ just _ spying on the Titans?”

“You know I can’t talk about that,” Nico said pointedly. “But… yes. That’s all I was doing. I’m not looking to explain that to my father.”

Mrs. O’Leary interrupted them with a loud barking sound.

Percy grimaced. “We better let her out. Besides, I’m not exactly in a hurry to do this.” He opened the gates of the arena, and Mrs. O’Leary bounded straight toward the woods.

“You don’t  _ have _ to do it,” Nico said as they followed Mrs. O’Leary through the woods. “It would give us an advantage in the battle, but you don’t have to do it.”

“Do you really mean that?” Percy asked, glancing at Nico out of the corner of his eyes.

Nico shrugged. “No. But I won’t force you into it. Just give you very compelling reasons why you should.” He kicked up dirt and grass as he walked. “I also don’t want you to think that this is going to eliminate any casualties. I know Annabeth has been working on plan after plan trying to find a way to maximize the amount of lives saved, but some deaths can’t be prevented.”

“Doesn’t mean we shouldn’t try,” Percy said. “Beckendorf’s alive. And Clarisse didn’t pull out of the war.”

“Ture,” Nico agreed.

“Will someone explain what this underworld creature is doing in my forest?”

Percy and Nico turned to see a very old, very fat satyr and Juniper the tree nymph.

“You there, Percy Jackson!” the satyr said. “Is this your beast?”

“Hello, Leneus,” Percy greeted with a sigh.

Leneus glared. “Call off your beast!”

"WOOF!" Mrs. O'Leary said happily.

The old satyr gulped. "Make it go away! Juniper, I will not help you under these circumstances!"

Juniper turned towards Percy and Nico with a sad look. Her eyes were green tinted with chlorophyll from crying.

“I was just asking about Grover,” she sniffled. “I know something's happened. He wouldn't stay gone this long if he wasn't in trouble. I was hoping that Leneus—"

"I told you!" the satyr protested. "You are better off without that traitor."

Juniper stamped her foot. "He is not a traitor! He's the bravest satyr ever, and I want to know where he is!"

"WOOF!"

Leneus's knees started knocking. "I... I won't answer questions with this hellhound sniffing my tail!"

Nico smiled thinly. “Heel, Mrs. O’Leary.” He whistled sharply and Mrs. O’Leary trotted off towards the far end of the grove. Small skeletal mice erupted from the ground to keep her busy.

Leneus huffed indignantly and brushed the twigs off his shirt. "Now, as I was trying to explain, young lady, your boyfriend has not sent any reports since we voted him into exile."

"You tried to vote him into exile," Percy corrected. "Chiron and Dionysus stopped you."

"Bah! They are honorary Council members. It wasn't a proper vote."

"I'll tell Dionysus you said that."

Leneus paled. "I only meant... Now see here, Jackson. This is none of your business."

"Grover's my friend," Percy said. "He wasn't lying to you about Pan's death. I saw it myself. Annabeth and Tyson and Nico were there too. You were just too scared to accept the truth."

Leneus's lips quivered. "No! Grover's a liar and good riddance. We're better off without him."

Percy grumbled. “Listen here, Leneus,” he said, grabbing the satyr by the shirt. “When Kronos attacks, and he  _ will _ attack, he’s going to have packs of hellhounds. He's going to destroy everything in his path—mortals, gods, demigods. Do you think he'll let the satyrs go free? Do you think you’ll be better off divided when he attacks? You're supposed to be a leader. So LEAD. Get out there and see what's happening. Find Grover and bring Juniper some news. Now, GO!" He shoved Leneus backwards and the satyr fell to the ground.

“Grover will never be accepted!” Leneus called as he scrambled away. “He will die an outcast!”

When he'd disappeared into the bushes, Juniper wiped her eyes. "I'm sorry, Percy. I didn't mean to get you involved. Leneus is still a lord of the Wild. You don't want to make an enemy of him."

"No problem," Percy said. "I've got worse enemies than overweight satyrs."

Wasn’t _that_ too true lately?

Juniper turned to Nico. “Nico? You’re the son of Hades and all. Have you heard anything about Grover?”

“Satyrs are different,” Nico said. “They reincarnate. I can’t sense things like that. But Percy and Grover have their empathy link. If anything happened to Grover, Percy would… well, you know empathy links.” He glanced at Percy awkwardly like he didn’t just insinuate that if Grover had died, Percy would also be dead.

“We’ll find him, Juniper,” Percy promised. “Grovers alive, I’m sure. There must be a simple reason why he hasn't contacted us."

Juniper nodded glumly. "I hate not being able to leave the forest. He could be anywhere, and I'm stuck here waiting. Oh, if that silly goat has gotten himself hurt—"

Mrs. O'Leary bounded back over and took an interest in Juniper's dress.

Juniper yelped. "Oh, no you don't! I know about dogs and trees. I'm gone!"  She went poof into green mist. Mrs. O'Leary looked disappointed, but she lumbered off to find another target, leaving Nico and Percy alone.

“Should we tell Annabeth where we’re going?” Nico asked Percy.

Percy cast a look back in the direction of Camp. “No. I’ll call her after, but… I don’t want her to try and talk me out of this. Hey,” he said suddenly. “I’m not some new lead on your family, am I?”

Nico gave him a dry look. “What do you take me for? I mean, I know all I need to know. But no promises that dad won’t try to capture you or something.”

“You’ll bust me out, right?”

Nico sent him a crooked smile, but said nothing.

“Nico?”

“I’ll bust you out,” Nico said dully. He glanced around for Mrs. O’Leary. “First stop. Your mom’s place.” He whistled, and Mrs. O'Leary came loping out of the woods. “Shadow travel time.”

“Does Will know about this?” Percy asked hesitantly. “Or are you hitching a ride with Mrs. O’Leary?”

Nico looked offended. “First of all,  _ I’m _ shadow traveling you. Mrs. O’Leary is going back to Camp. Second, Will does not get to decide when I can or cannot shadow travel.” He patted Mrs. O’Leary on the head. She ran back in the direction of Camp.

Nico reached for Percy and pulled him into the shadows.

* * *

They emerged from the shadows in the middle of the living room.

“Hey, Paul,” Percy said awkwardly.

Paul had jumped a mile high when he saw his stepson and Nico appear from thin air. “Percy?”

“Paul, did you say Percy?” his mom’s voice called.

“Hi, mom,” Percy called.

Sally appeared in the room with a smile on her face. “Percy, you’re back. Oh, hello, Nico, how are you?”

“I’m fine,” Nico answered. “We actually came here to talk to you.”

Paul stared at them. “How did you do that?”

“I thought you said you told him,” Nico muttered to Percy.

“I did,” Percy said. He cleared his throat. “Paul, you remember Nico. He’s a demigod like me.”

“Son of Hades,” Nico added. “God of the dead and the Underworld. And the riches of the earth. I shadow traveled Percy and I here.

"So it's true." Paul stared at Percy like he'd never seen him before. "All the talk about monsters, and being a demigod… it's really true."

“Sorry to just appear like this,” Percy said sheepishly. “But Nico’s right. We really need to talk, mom.”

Percy and Nico took seats in the living room to explain what was going on in the Greek world. Percy explained about Typhon, and the gods, and the battle that was coming. Finally, he told them about his and Nico’s plan.

Sally took a deep breath, like she was thinking how to tell Percy no.

"Percy, it's dangerous," she said. "Even for you."

"Mom, I know. I could die. Nico explained that. But if we don't try—"

"We'll all die," Nico said. "Ms. Jackson, we don't stand a chance against an invasion. And there will be an invasion."

"An invasion of New York?" Paul said. "Is that even possible? How could we not see the… the monsters?" He said the word like he still couldn't believe this was real.

“Hecate is supporting the Titans,” Percy said. “She’s the goddess of the Mist. She could make you see whatever she wants. I mean, Typhon is trampling across the country right now, and mortals think he’s a storm system.”

"Sally," Nico said, "Percy needs your blessing. The process has to start that way. This has only been done successfully twice before. Both times, the mother had to give her blessing. She had to be willing to let her son take the risk."

"You want me to bless this?" She shook her head. "It's crazy. Percy, please—"

"Mom, I can't do it without you."

"And if you survive this… this process?"

“Then we go to war,” Percy said.

"You're my son," Sally said miserably. "I can't just…"

Percy sent Paul a pleading look.

"Sally." He put his hand over Sally's hands. "I can't claim to know what you and Percy have been going through all these years. But it sounds to me… it sounds like Percy is doing something noble. I wish I had that much courage."

Sally stared at her hands. She looked like she was trying not to cry. Percy wished he could reassure his mom that they would see each other again, but he honestly didn’t know if they would.

"Percy," she said, "I give you my blessing."

Nico nodded. “It’s time.”

"Percy," Sally said. "One last thing. If you… if you survive this fight with Kronos, send me a sign." She rummaged through her purse and handed Percy her cell phone. “Just in case. If you're not able to call… maybe a sign that I could see from anywhere in Manhattan. To let me know you're okay."

"Like Theseus," Paul suggested. "He was supposed to raise white sails when he came home to Athens."

“Something blue,” Percy said. “From Olympus. Just promise me that you’ll stay inside until my birthday. Please, mom.”

Sally nodded. “I’ll watch for a blue signal. And I’ll stay inside.”

She gave Percy one last hug. Percy shook hands with Paul as Sally hugged Nico as well much to the younger boy’s chagrin.

Nico gripped Percy’s hand and then they were back in the shadows.

* * *

They emerged from the shadows in Central Park. A girl about eight years old was sitting in front of a fire.

The girl had mousy brown hair and a simple brown dress. She wore a scarf over her head and she poked the fire with a stick, and it seemed to glow more richly red than a normal fire.

"Hello," she said.

“Hello, Lady,” Nico said, bowing politely.

“Hestia,” Percy realized. He bowed awkwardly.

"Sit, Percy Jackson," she said. "Would you like some dinner?”

Percy and Nico took a seat around the fire as Hestia waved her hand. A picnic appeared on the edge of the fire. There were plates of roast beef, baked potatoes, buttered carrots, fresh bread, and a whole bunch of other foods.

“For the gods,” Percy said, scraping a portion of his meal into the flames. Nico silently did the same.

Hestia smiled. "Thank you. As tender of the flame, I get a share of every sacrifice, you know."

“What are you doing here, my lady?” Nico asked. “Shouldn’t you be on Olympus?”

“I am needed here,” Hestia said simply. She glanced at Percy. “You asked for your mother’s blessing.”

Percy set his plate down. “I did.”

“You seek the same path as Luke Castellan,” Hestia said sadly.

“This will help me save lives,” Percy insisted.

"Mmm." Hestia opened her hand and the fire roared. Flames shot thirty feet into the air. Heat slapped them in the face. Then the fire died back down to normal.

"Not all powers are spectacular." Hestia looked at Percy. "Sometimes the hardest power to master is the power of yielding. Do you believe me?"

“I know,” Percy said with a grimace. “I do. To save a friend, I would sacrifice the world. I’ve been told. But if there’s a chance that I can save the world and all my friends, then I’m going to take it.”

The goddess smiled. "You are a good hero, Percy Jackson. Not too proud. I like that. But you have much to learn. When Dionysus was made a god, I gave up my throne for him. It was the only way to avoid a civil war among the gods."

"It unbalanced the Council," Percy said. "Suddenly there were seven guys and five girls."

Hestia shrugged. "It was the best solution, not a perfect one. Now I tend the fire. I fade slowly into the background. No one will ever write epic poems about the deeds of Hestia. Most demigods don't even stop to talk to me. But that is no matter. I keep the peace. I yield when necessary. You must learn how to yield. How to let someone else take the burden."

“Please don’t ask me to stand aside,” Percy said quietly. “I have to do this. If you’re trying to warn me against going, you can’t.” He winced. “I’m not trying to be rude.”

Hestia shrugged. “I won’t stop you. But I leave you with this. When all else fails, when all the other mighty gods have gone off to war, I am all that’s left. Home. Hearth. I am the last Olympian. You must remember me when you face your final decision.”

Percy looked at Nico, then back at Hestia. "I have to continue, my lady. I have to stop Luke… I mean Kronos."

Hestia nodded. "Very well. I cannot be of much assistance, beyond what I have already told you. I will see you again, Percy, on Olympus." Her tone was ominous, as though that next meeting would not be happy.

The goddess waved her hand, and then she and the fire were gone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Why is Hestia telling Percy all this stuff? Well, in everyone else's eyes, Percy and the others are not time travelers. At least, they don't know that anyway. So to Hestia, this is valuable information that Percy needs.
> 
> There's a deleted scene that will be up in Riordanverse Fic Outtakes shortly.


	7. And Now for Grover's Musical Talent (Nico)

IT SEEMED COLDER NOW that Hestia was gone.

Nico glanced at Percy. Hestia had given him a chance to turn around. But Percy had refused.

What Hestia had said was true enough. Percy didn’t know how to yield. He took on the weight of the world, figuratively (and literally if you counted two years ago), for others. That had been one of the reasons why Nico had admired him at first. Percy didn’t fight for himself. He fought for other people.

_ A real hero _ , he recalled his younger self’s thoughts.

Yeah, that was Percy alright.

Nico gestured to a cluster of boulders. “The Door of Orpheus.”

“Right,” Percy said. He turned and called, “GROVER!”

Nico waited patiently as Percy scrunched up his face in concentration.

“That’s attractive,” he said, causing Percy to give him a stink eye.

“I’m concentrating,” Percy snapped. He closed his eyes. After a few minutes, he stumbled. “I got through. He’s on his way.”

A minute later, the tree next to them shivered. Grover fell out of the branches, right on his head.

"Grover!" Percy yelled.

"Blah-haa-haa!" Grover bleated.

"You okay, man?"

"Oh, I'm fine." He rubbed his head. His horns had grown so much they poked an inch above his curly hair. "I was at the other end of the park. The dryads had this great idea of passing me through the trees to get me here. They don't understand height very well."

He grinned and got to his feet. Hooves. Whatever.

"Good to see you, G-man," Percy said. "You remember Nico."

Grover nodded at Nico, then he gave Percy a big hug.

"Perrrrcy!" he bleated. "I missed you! I miss camp. They don't serve very good enchiladas in the wilderness."

“Grover, you’ve been missing for the last two months,” Nico said, cutting right to the chase. He caught the guilty look on Percy’s face.

"The last two—" Grover's smile faded. "The last two months? What are you talking about?"

"We haven't heard from you," Percy said. "Juniper's worried."

"Hold on." He looked up at the stars. "What month is this?"

"August."

The color drained from his face. "That's impossible. It's June. I just lay down to take a nap and…" He grabbed Percy’s arms. "I remember now! He knocked me out. Percy, we have to stop him!"

"Whoa," Percy said. "Slow down. Tell us what happened."

Grover took a deep breath. "I was… I was walking in the woods up by Harlem Meer. And I felt this tremble in the ground, like something powerful was near. I started following the scent. This man in a long black coat was walking through the park, and I noticed he didn't cast a shadow. Middle of a sunny day, and he cast no shadow. He kind of shimmered as he moved."

"Like a mirage?" Nico asked.

"Yes," Grover said. "And whenever he passed humans—"

"The humans would pass out," Nico said. "Curl up and go to sleep."

"That's right! Then after he was gone, they'd get up and go about their business like nothing happened."

Nico blew out a breath. “Morpheus. Grover, what happened next?”

"I followed the guy. He kept looking up at the buildings around the park like he was making estimates or something. This lady jogger ran by, and she curled up on the sidewalk and started snoring. The guy in black put his hand on her forehead like he was checking her temperature. Then he kept walking. By this time, I knew he was a monster or something even worse. I followed him into this grove, to the base of a big elm tree. I was about to summon some dryads to help me capture him when he turned and…” Grover swallowed. "Percy, his face. I couldn't make out his face because it kept shifting. Just looking at him made me sleepy. I said, 'What are you doing?' He said, 'Just having a look around. You should always scout a battlefield before the battle.' I said something really smart like, 'This forest is under my protection. You won't start any battles here!' And he laughed. He said, 'You're lucky I'm saving my energy for the main event, little satyr. I'll just grant you a short nap. Pleasant dreams.' And that's the last thing I remember."

Nico exhaled. "Grover, you met Morpheus, the God of Dreams. You're lucky you ever woke up."

"Two months," Grover moaned. "He put me to sleep for two months!"

“This proves that there’s going to be an invasion,” Nico said. “We have to get on with this and then tell Camp.”

“Wait,” Grover said, holding up a hand. “Get on with what?”

Percy explained the plan to Grover. “We just need you to open an entrance to the Underworld now.”

"You're not serious," Grover said. "Not the Underworld again."

"I'm not asking you to come, man," Percy promised. "I know you just woke up. But we need some music to open the door. Can you do it?"

Grover took out his reed pipes. "I guess I could try. I know a few Nirvana tunes that can split rocks. But, Percy, are you sure you want to do this?"

"Please, man," Percy said. "It would mean a lot. For old times' sake?"

Grover whimpered. "As I recall, in the old times we almost died a lot. But okay, here goes nothing." He put his pipes to his lips and played a shrill, lively tune. The boulders trembled. A few more stanzas, and they cracked open, revealing a triangular crevice.

Nico and Percy peered insides.

“Yeah, that’s it,” Nico confirmed.

Percy turned to Grover. "Thanks… I think."

"Perrrrcy, is Kronos really going to invade?"

"I wish I could tell you better, but yeah. He will."

Grover straightened up and brushed off his T-shirt. "I've got to rally the nature spirits, then. Maybe we can help. I'll see if we can find this Morpheus."

"Better tell Juniper you're okay, too."

His eyes widened. "Juniper! Oh, she's going to kill me!" He started to run off, then scrambled back and gave Percy another hug. "Be careful down there! Come back alive!"

Once he was gone, Nico and Percy faced the tunnel.

“You ready?” Nico asked Percy.

“Nope. Let’s go,” he said cheerfully.

They plunged into darkness.

* * *

They emerged at the base of a cliff, on a plain of black volcanic sand. To their right, the River Styx gushed from the rocks and roared off in a cascade of rapids. To their left, far away in the gloom, fires burned on the ramparts of Erebos, the great black walls of Hades's kingdom.

Nico shivered. “I always thought that if I couldn’t find a place anywhere, that I’d at least have the Underworld, but… everything here just reminds me of there.” He cast a glance towards the glow in the distance.

“Yeah,” Percy said quietly. “I get it. At least you won’t be going back there.”

Nico gave Percy a guilty look. “Gods, I didn’t even think about that. You won’t go either, will you?”

Percy either didn’t want to answer or didn’t hear him because he didn’t say anything except: “So what now?”

“Now you get ready to jump in,” Nico said, not mentioning the subject change.

The River Styx's current swirled with strange objects—broken toys, ripped-up college diplomas, wilted homecoming corsages—all the dreams people had thrown away as they'd passed from life into death. Personally, Nico wouldn’t have chosen to swim in these waters.

“Remember,” Nico said. “Stay anchored to your mortal life.”

Movement caught his eyes and he glance behind Percy at a figure dressed in Green armor.

Percy whirled around.

The warrior was tall and buff, with a cruel scarred face and closely shaved black hair. He wore a white tunic and bronze armor. He held a plumed war helm under his arm. But his eyes were human—pale green like a shallow sea—and a bloody arrow stuck out of his left calf, just above the ankle.

"Achilles," Percy said. 

The ghost nodded. "I warned the other one not to follow my path. Now I will warn you. Do not do this," he said. "It will make you powerful. But it will also make you weak. Your prowess in combat will be beyond any mortal's, but your weaknesses, your failings will increase as well."

“I’m sorry,” Percy said. “But I have to do this.”

Achilles lowered his head. "Let the gods witness I tried. Hero, if you must do this, concentrate on your mortal point. Imagine one spot of your body that will remain vulnerable. This is the point where your soul will anchor your body to the world. It will be your greatest weakness, but also your only hope. No man may be completely invulnerable. Lose sight of what keeps you mortal, and the River Styx will burn you to ashes. You will cease to exist."

Percy stood straighter.

Achilles scowled at Percy. "Prepare yourself, foolish boy. Whether you survive this or not, you have sealed your doom!" With that happy thought, he vanished.

Nico glanced at Percy. “Last chance. You have to be sure of this if you want to do this.”

“I’m sure, Nico,” Percy said. He gave Nico a smile. “I’ll be back. Just wait on the shore. But if anything goes wrong, make sure you get your father to help.”

“I’ll be back,” Nico mimicked. “But if anything goes wrong…”

Percy rolled his eyes. “Whatever, Nico.” He turned to face the water. Then he stepped into the dark waves and disappeared.

Nico paced the shore anxiously as he waited for Percy to resurface. He didn’t doubt that Percy could do this, he’d done it once before, but that was what worried him. Could Percy still gain the curse of Achilles?

Suddenly, Percy burst out of the river. He collapsed on the sand, sputtering and coughing.

“Are you okay?” Nico asked. He eyed Percy in alarm.

The son of Poseidon had bright red skin like Apollo’s cows.

“I’m fine, I think,” Percy said distantly. His skin resumed it’s normal shade. He uncapped Riptide and pressed the blade to his arm. No blood was drawn.

“It worked,” Nico said in relief.

Percy recapped Riptide and grinned. “Told you. Alright. I’ll head back to New York and you’ll get your dad to help fight?”

Nico grimaced. “That’s the plan,” he said. “Hopefully he doesn’t mind me showing up for the first time out of the blue.” He watched as Percy turned to head back up the tunnel and back to the mortal world.

With a sigh, Nico started towards his father’s palace.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not really sure what to put here. Um, it's almost Percy's birthday. I'll probably do something for that so look out for that. Not sure what yet. Maybe extra chapters or some stuff for my Outtakes. If there's anything you want to see from me for this, let me know and I'll see what I can do.
> 
> Kind of fitting that I'll be posting the Last Olympian stuff during the month of August, don't you think? Just realized that.
> 
> I guess I do know what to put here.


	8. The Landmines Are Free Game (Annabeth)

WHEN SHE HAD WOKEN UP to find Percy had vanished the night before, Annabeth was worried. Of course, she knew where Percy had gone, but still. She didn’t like that he was gone.

It was hard not to stare at her slightly illegal cell phone all day, waiting for Percy to call.

Magnus at least seemed to catch onto her worries.

“You okay?” he asked her gently.

Annabeth sighed. “No. Not really. I… I don’t like Percy disappearing overnight. I just freak out because I feel like I won’t see him again. At least, not for a long time. It just brings back bad memories.”

“I remember you told me about that,” Magnus said. “You know, you really did win that bet by a landslide.”

Annabeth laughed. “True. Yeah, okay.”

Suddenly, her cell phone rang. She answered the call as fast as she could.

“Percy?”

“Hey, Annabeth,” Percy’s voice said. “It worked. Nico’s headed to his father’s palace now, and I’m on my way up. Can you get everyone ready?”

“What do I tell them?” Annabeth asked, biting her lip.

Percy was silent for a moment. “Tell Chiron that Morpheus was scouting the city. Tell him I had a dream. I don’t know. Just make sure everyone meets at the Empire State Building. And make sure the Stolls know that the landmines around the Ares cabin are free game,” he added.

Annabeth’s eyes widened in alarm. “Free game?” she repeated incredulously. “What do you mean, free game?”

“I gotta go, I’ll call you when I’m out of the tunnel,” Percy said. “I love you, Wise Girl.”

“Love you too, Seaweed Brain,” she said.

Percy ended the call.

Magnus looked at Annabeth. “What now?”

Annabeth took a deep breath. “Now we go to war.”

* * *

The look on Annabeth’s face when she reached the Big House must have been very telling because Chiron immediately rose up.

“What’s going on?” he asked urgently.

“I just got word from Percy,” Annabeth told him. “Morpheus was scouting the city for an invasion. Percy wants everyone to meet him at the Empire State Building.”

Chiron closed his eyes in prayer. “An invasion. The gods aren’t in Olympus.” He nodded. “Inform the counselors. Tell them to get their cabin’s ready for battle.”

“I’ll go to the infirmary,” Magnus volunteered. “I can help pack supplies and let everyone there know what’s going on.”

“Thanks, Magnus,” Annabeth said. She glanced at Chiron. “What about you?”

Chiron’s mouth twitched. “I suppose I’ll be preparing our rides. The Camp vans of course.”

* * *

“Clarisse!” Annabeth called.

The daughter of Ares turned around. “What?” she grumbled.

Annabeth’s eyes flickered to Chris and then back to Clarisse. “There’s going to be an invasion in Manhattan. We’re going there now. Get your siblings ready.” She turned to Chris. “Can you tell Travis and Connor?”

“Sure,” Chris nodded. He didn’t look too good after hearing what Annabeth had said. “A… an invasion? You’re sure?”

“Percy just called me,” Annabeth said. “Morpheus was apparently scouting the city. Oh, and Percy told me to tell the Stolls something about the landmines being free game?”

Chris winced and Clarisse glared at him.

“If you Hermes kids even think about stealing our landmines,” she said threateningly.

“Commandeering for the war effort,” Chris tried weakly.

“Just get your cabins ready,” Annabeth sighed.

* * *

In the Athena cabin, Annabeth faced her siblings.

“There will be an invasion,” she said. “Percy’s certain of it. We’re going to the Empire State Building to get ready for the invasion. And I won’t lie. There will probably be casualties and some of us are going to be badly wounded. No one is being forced to go. I won’t hold it against anyone who wants to stay back.” She looked at each of her siblings sadly. “But if you are going to come fight, you need to get ready. Armor, swords, knives, bows, whatever.”

“The Titans are attacking?” Sophia asked fearfully.

“They are,” Annabeth confirmed. “It’s up to us to defend Olympus.”

Malcolm stepped forward. “You heard Annabeth. Time to get ready for battle.”

Annabeth couldn’t help but feel incredibly guilty as she put her armor on. Some of these heroes she would be sending to their deaths. She almost called the whole thing off, but the determined looks on her siblings faces changed her mind. They deserved to be able to fight for what was right. She couldn’t take that away from them.

* * *

They rode in silence until Annabeth’s phone rang. She snatched it up quickly.

“Percy, where have you been?” she shouted into the phone. “You called an hour ago! I’ve been worried sick.”

“It took awhile for me to make it out of the tunnel and then I had to hail a taxi,” Percy explained. “But that doesn’t matter. Where are you?”

"We're on our way like you asked, almost to the Queens—Midtown Tunnel. But, Percy, what are you planning?” Annabeth asked.

“Trust me,” Percy said. “I kind of have a plan.”

“Your plans aren’t always the best,” she pointed out.

Percy grumbled. “I have good ones sometimes. But seriously. Trust me. I’ll see you there.” He hung up.

Annabeth let the phone drop into her lap.

“Annabeth?” Malcolm asked hesitantly.

“I’m okay,” she said. “Just worried.” She shook her head and got up to walk to where Magnus and Alex were sitting.

“Just so you know,” Alex said, “I fight better without all this armor.” She gestured to her armor clad figure. “I mean, I understand forcing this one to wear it,” she said, jerking her thumb at Magnus, “but it’s Magnus.”

“I don’t know if I should be grateful you all care about my safety, or insulted that you all think so little of me,” Magnus muttered. After a pause he rolled his eyes. “Thanks for your input, Jack.”

“Anyway, you obviously came over here for a reason,” Alex said, looking at Annabeth.

Annabeth nodded. “Percy supposedly has a plan. I have no idea what it is.” She bit her lip. “I guess I just came to ask if you two are sure about fighting. I can’t ask you to do this. This isn’t your fight.”

“You’re my cousin,” Magnus told her seriously. “Of course it’s my fight.”

The buses came to a stop at the curb in front of the Empire State Building.

Annabeth took a shaky breath and led the demigods off the bus to where Percy was waiting near the doors.

“Fifty campers,” Percy murmured when Annabeth reached him. “Are we sure we should do this?”

“You have the plan, right?”

Percy grimaced. “Yeah. But you aren’t going to like it.” He cleared his throat. “Thanks for coming, everyone.” He took a deep breath. “Okay, like I told Annabeth on the phone, there’s going to be an invasion soon. I think it’ll happen tonight. We need to get up to Olympus and find out what kind of defenses the gods have in place.” He hesitated before adding, “Nico’s in the Underworld trying to get Hades, Demeter, and Persephone to come help, so with luck, we’ll have a few gods on our side.” He glanced at Chiron. “Anything else?”

Chiron shook his head. “I make it a point never to visit Olympus unless I am summoned. I will go gather what allies I can. It may not be too late to convince my brother centaurs to help.” He gave Percy a reassuring look. “You’ll do well, Percy. Just remember your strengths and beware your weaknesses.”

Percy nodded and turned a confident looking smile on the rest of the campers. If Annabeth didn’t know Percy better, she might have believed that confident smile.

"Let's go," Percy told the campers.

A security guard was sitting behind the desk in the lobby, reading a big black book with a flower on the cover. He glanced up when the demigods all filed in with their weapons and armor clanking. "School group? We're about to close up."

"No," Percy said. "Six-hundredth floor."

The security guard checked them out. His eyes were pale blue and his head was completely bald. He seemed to notice their weapons, so he wasn't fooled by the Mist.

"There is no six-hundredth floor, kid." He said it like it was a required line he didn't believe. "Move along."

Percy leaned across the desk. "Fifty demigods attract an awful lot of monsters. You really want us hanging out in your lobby?"

The guard thought about that. Then he hit a buzzer and the security gate swung open. "Make it quick."

"You don't want us going through the metal detectors," Percy added.

"Um, no," the security guard agreed. "Elevator on the right. I guess you know the way." 

Percy tossed him a golden drachma and they marched over to the elevators.

“Two groups,” Annabeth decided, staring at the size of the elevator. “Yeah, two groups for sure.” She turned to face the crowd of demigods. “Okay. First group with Percy and I will be Castor, Pollux, and the Ares, Hermes, and Apollo cabins. Second group will be Athena, Aphrodite, Hephaestus, and Demeter.”

Everyone nodded and the first group moved to get into the elevator. Percy and Annabeth moved to follow them, but they moved slowly.

Annabeth’s eyes darted around. She didn’t like the elevator to Olympus. The doors were much too similar to the Doors of Death.

Once they got into the elevator, the elevator music started up which Annabeth did her best to block out. Other than that, the ride was silent. Not even Clarisse or Michael could find something snarky to say.

Finally, the doors opened. Annabeth got out none too quickly. In front of them was a path of floating stones that led through the clouds up to Mount Olympus. Annabeth sighed wistfully, thinking about the architecture of the place.

Olympus truly was beautiful. The mansions glittered gold and white against the sides of the mountain. Gardens bloomed on a hundred terraces. Scented smoke rose from braziers that lined the winding streets. And right at the top of the snow-capped crest rose the main palace of the gods. It looked as majestic as ever, but something seemed wrong. It was quiet. There was no music or laughter like there had been the other times Annabeth had been here.

The elevator doors opened again, and the second group of half-bloods joined them.

“Come on,” Percy said, starting across the sky bridge towards the streets of Olympus.

The shops were closed. The parks were empty. A couple of Muses sat on a bench strumming flaming lyres, but their hearts didn't seem to be in it. A lone Cyclops swept the street with an uprooted oak tree. A minor godling spotted them from a balcony and ducked inside, closing his shutters.

They passed under a big marble archway with statues of Zeus and Hera on either side. Annabeth pinched her lips and the sight of the queen of the gods’ statue.

"Look!" Pollux cried, pointing toward the horizon. "What is that?"

They all froze. Blue lights were streaking across the evening sky toward Olympus like tiny comets. They seemed to be coming from all over the city, heading straight toward the mountain. As they got close, they fizzled out. The demigods watched the lights for several minutes and they didn't seem to do any damage, but still it was strange.

"Like infrared scopes," Michael muttered. "We're being targeted."

"Let's get to the palace," Percy said.

No one was guarding the hall of the gods. The gold-and-silver doors stood wide open. The demigods’ footsteps echoed as they walked into the throne room.

Twelve giant empty thrones stood in a U around a hearth. In one corner, a house-size globe of water hovered in the air, and inside swam the Ophiotaurus, half-cow, half-serpent.

"Moooo!" he said happily, turning in a circle.

“Sorry, is that a cow?” Alex asked, eyebrows raised.

“Ophiotaurus,” Annabeth corrected.

“His name is Bessie,” Percy said proudly. He waved at Bessie. “Hey, man. They treating you okay?”

"Mooo," Bessie answered.

Alex gave Percy a strange look, but let the subject drop.

As they walked towards the thrones, a woman’s voice said, “Hello again, Percy Jackson. You and your friends are welcome.”

A woman, Hestia, Annabeth assumed, was standing by the hearth, poking the flames with a stick.

Percy bowed. "Lady Hestia."

Annabeth was quick to follow suit as were the rest of the demigods.

Hestia regarded Percy with her red glowing eyes. "I see you went through with your plan. You bear the curse of Achilles."

“The curse of who?” Magnus muttered.

"You must be careful," Hestia warned Percy. "You gained much on your journey. But like I have told you, power isn’t everything.”

Percy looked tense. “But family is.” He cleared his throat. “Um, Lady Hestia, we’ve come to ask about the defenses-”

“We know what you’ve come to ask,” a man’s voice said.

A god shimmered into existence next to Hestia. He looked about twenty-five, with curly salt-and-pepper hair and elfish features. He wore a military pilot's flight suit, with tiny bird's wings fluttering on his helmet and his black leather boots. In the crook of his arm was a long staff entwined with two living serpents. Hermes.

"I will leave you now," Hestia said. She bowed to the aviator and disappeared into smoke.

“Hello, Percy,” Hermes said.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I almost forgot that Annabeth (I think it was Annabeth) noted in House of Hades that the Doors of Death looked like the doors to the elevator to Mount Olympus.
> 
> Also, if you guys have any one-shot ideas or what-if ideas or just any ideas you want me to write, I'll be doing that to post on August 18 in celebration of Percy's - how old would he be this year? 2020-1993=27. Percy's 27th birthday! Wow. I really hope that at 27 years old Percy's living a calm and happy life with Annabeth in New Rome.


	9. These Are Our Greatest Hits (Percy)

EVER SINCE THE RIVER STYX, Percy had been in a sort of daze. It wasn’t from the actual swim, but more because of what he had seen when he was in the water.

The first time, he had heard his friends’ voices encouraging him and when it was time to emerge from the water, he saw Annabeth reaching for him with a smile on her face.

This time had been different.

* * *

_ As soon as he stepped into the river, Percy went under. He tried not to panic as he realized that he could not actually breath underwater. At least not this water. But it was hard while every nerve in his body burned. He was dissolving in the water. He saw the faces of his friends, but they faded away. _

_ Then suddenly a familiar voice was there, speaking to him. A younger Annabeth’s face swam out of the darkness. _

_ “You drool when you sleep,” she said, looking amused. _

_ She was gone, replaced by the Annabeth that Percy knew now. _

_ “I will  _ never _ make things easy for you,” she said seriously. _

_ A wave of water washed across Percy’s vision and when it cleared, Annabeth’s frightened face stared up at him. _

_ “Percy, let me go,” she croaked. “You can’t pull me up.” _

No! _ Percy shouted. _

_ Annabeth took on a brave look. “As long as we’re together.” _

_ Another wave blocked Percy’s sight. It washed away to show Annabeth swimming beside him. _

_ “Tell me about New Rome,” she demanded. “You said we could have a future there! Tell me!” _

_ Percy blinked and shook himself out of the memories. There was a tug in his lower back. The current pulled at him, but it wasn't carrying him away anymore. The string in his back kept him tied to the shore. _

_ "Hold on, Seaweed Brain." It was Annabeth's voice again. "You're not getting away from me that easily." _

_ The cord strengthened. _

_ Percy could see Annabeth now. She was kneeling over him with an angry face. Oh gods, he knew what day this was. Annabeth had just found him. They shared a heartfelt reunion for two seconds before Annabeth judo-flipped him. _

_ “If you ever leave me again,” she said, “I swear to all the gods—” _

_ Suddenly, Percy burst out of the river, startling Nico. _

* * *

The River Styx had shown Percy all of his and Annabeth’s greatest hits. It just reminded Percy of everything he had to lose in the upcoming battle. But also everything he had to fight for.

But still. It had thrown him off. Running into Hermes didn’t help much.

“Hello, Percy,” Hermes said.

Percy bowed awkwardly. "Lord Hermes."

_ Oh, sure, _ one of the snakes said in Percy’s mind.  _ Don't say hi to us. We're just reptiles _ .

_ George _ , the other snake scolded.  _ Be polite. _

"Hello, George," Percy said. "Hey, Martha."

_ Did you bring us a rat? _ George asked.

_ George, stop it, _ Martha said.  _ He's busy! _

_ Too busy for rats?  _ George said. _ That's just sad. _

“Um, Hermes,” Percy said, “if you know why we’re here, then you know what we need to know. What defenses have the Olympians left?”

Hermes’s eyes were steely cold. He glanced at Magnus and Alex. “Apparently not as well defended as we thought.”

The other demigods shifted. Percy looked back to see them giving Magnus and Alex suspicious looks. That was great. Now everyone thought they were spies.

“Please,” Annabeth spoke up. “I know my mother would have made sure Olympus was defended in the Olympian’s absence. Kronos is getting ready to attack New York. My mother would have known this-”

“You’re mother,” Hermes grumbled. He scratched his back with his caduceus, and George and Martha muttered  _ Ow, ow, ow _ . "Don't get me started on your mother, young lady. She's the reason I'm here at all. Zeus didn't want any of us to leave the front line. But your mother kept pestering him nonstop, 'It's a trap, it's a diversion, blah, blah, blah.' She wanted to come back herself, but Zeus was not going to let his number one strategist leave his side while we're battling Typhon. And so naturally he sent me to talk to you."

Percy took a deep breath. “It  _ is _ a trap, but lucky for you gods, we can defend Olympus while you focus on Typhon. So. What defenses are we working with?”

Hermes looked startled. “Aeolus, the King of the Winds, has sent his most powerful minions to guard the citadel,” he said. “No one save the gods can approach Olympus from the air. They would be knocked out of the sky.” He eyed the demigods dubiously. “So if Kronos wants Olympus, he’ll have to march through the entire city with his army and take the elevators. Can you really see him doing this?” Hermes made it sound pretty ridiculous—hordes of monsters going up in the elevator twenty at a time, listening to "Stayin' Alive."

“Sadly, yes,” Percy grumbled. He straightened up. “Thank you, Hermes.”

Hermes’ eyes seemed to linger on his kids longer than the other demigods. “Typhon is our greatest enemy. In the old days, Olympus was almost overthrown by Typhon. He is the husband of Echidna and the father of all monsters. We can never forget how close he came to destroying us all; how he humiliated us! We were more powerful back in the old days. Now we can expect no help from Poseidon because he’s fighting his own war. Hades sits in his realm and does nothing, and Demeter and Persephone follow his lead.”

The Demeter kids shifted at the mention of their mother.

“It will take all our remaining power to oppose the storm giant.” He turned his eyes towards Percy. “So I ask, have you thought this through? If you are here when Typhon arrives, you will not survive.”

Percy bit back his reply that he probably would survive, but he knew Hermes would not appreciate that.

“And if Kronos has destroyed Olympus, it won’t matter if you defeat Typhon,” Percy argued.

Some of the other campers muttered nervously.

Percy felt kind of bad. Here he was roping them all into this big fight and Hermes was casually reminding them that death was a very likely possibility.

Annabeth cleared her throat. “You said my mother wanted to come. Did she give you any messages for us?”

"Messages," Hermes muttered. "'It'll be a great job,' they told me. 'Not much work. Lots of worshippers.' Hmph. Nobody cares what I have to say. It's always about other people's messages.”

_ Rodents _ , George mused.  _ I'm in it for the rodents _ .

_ Shhh _ , Martha scolded.  _ We care what Hermes has to say. Don't we, George? _

_ Oh, absolutely. Can we go back to the battle now? I want to do laser mode again. That's fun. _

Alex looked interested. “Did you say laser mode?”

Percy and Annabeth shuddered. “No. No he didn’t,” they said together.

"Quiet, both of you," Hermes grumbled to his snakes. He glanced at Annabeth. "Bah," Hermes said. "Your mother said to warn you that you are on your own. You must hold Manhattan without the help of the gods. As if I didn't know that. Why they pay her to be the wisdom goddess, I'm not sure."

"Anything else?" Annabeth asked.

"She said you should try plan twenty-three. She said you would know what that meant."

Annabeth nodded. “Got it. Go on.”

"Last thing." Hermes looked at Percy. "She said to tell Percy: 'Remember the rivers.' And, um, something about keeping her daughter safe."

“Always,” Percy declared.

“Thank you, Hermes,” Annabeth said quietly.

Hermes shrugged indifferently. “I will leave you now,” he said tightly. “I have a war to fight.”

He began to shine. Percy turned away and made sure everyone else did the same.

_ Good luck, Percy, _ Martha the snake whispered.

Hermes glowed with the light of a supernova. Then he was gone.

Magnus coughed awkwardly. “Um, so question. What did they mean by the curse of Achilles?”

Percy crossed his arms. “It’s nothing. Don’t worry about it.”

No one looked very convinced. Especially the Athena kids.

Malcolm looked Percy over with scrutinizing eyes. “Magnus is right. Hestia said you bear the curse of Achilles.” His eyes widened in realization. “You bathed in the River Styx, didn’t you?”

Percy didn’t say anything.

“Do you think we’re going to lose then?” Malcolm continued, looking angry. “It’s your insurance policy?”

“No!” Percy exclaimed. He crossed his arms. “Look. Luke… Luke swam in the Styx too. It’s how he could become Kronos. Nico suggested I do the same to even the odds.”

Still, Malcolm eyed Percy distrustfully, and Percy could see that the other campers seemed to be putting together the fact that their leader was the only one who was virtually invincible.

“Don’t do this,” Magnus frowned. “I mean, you’ve all known Percy for years. He’s the most selfless guy I know. I still don’t know what the curse of Achilles is, but if Percy has it, then he had a good reason. A good reason like trying his best to make himself good enough to take on Kronos and stop him from taking over the world.”

“The curse of Achilles makes you invincible,” Annabeth explained to her cousin. “Like Achilles was.”

“He got shot in the heel,” Alex pointed out.

Annabeth sighed. “Yes, but everywhere else was invincible. It’s a curse because the bearer has a weak point like Achilles.”

“The point is, now I can face Kronos,” Percy interrupted. “Hopefully, it’s enough to beat him. If not… maybe I’ll soften him up enough for the rest of you to take care of him.”

Annabeth hit his arm. “Don’t say that.”

Will cleared his throat. “Not to be that guy, but, um, shouldn’t we start figuring out our plan?”

Annabeth nodded. “Right. Let’s go back down to the ground. We’ll organize from there.” She cast an uncertain look at Percy. “You did say you had a plan?” she whispered.

“One you won’t like, yeah,” Percy confirmed.

They left the throne room and began walking back towards the elevators.

“The lights have stopped,” Katie noted.

Silena stopped. “Does something seem… off to you guys?”

Alex frowned. “No?”

Percy’s fist clenched. “It’s quiet. There’s no noise from the city.” He marched over to a small park at the edge of the mountain and peered through one of the tourist binoculars along the railing.

In the streets below, traffic had stopped. Pedestrians were lying on the sidewalks, or curled up in doorways. There was no sign of violence, no wrecks, nothing like that. It was as if all the people in New York had simply decided to stop whatever they were doing and pass out.

“Percy?” Beckendorf called. “What is it?”

Percy turned around, anger on his face. “The city is asleep. Morpheus has put the entire island of Manhattan to sleep. The invasion is starting.”

Alex looked startled. “Wait. He can do that?”

As they all looked down at the sleeping mortals, Percy had to admit it was a little unnerving to know that Morpheus had the power to put a whole city to sleep.

Granted, he had the help of Hecate and who knows if Hypnos was assisting in the sleep spell too. But still.

“What’s the plan?” Magnus asked.

Percy grinned sheepishly. “Got it from a buddy of mine. I’ll explain it when we get back down.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here ya go. He's the River Styx scene you missed since that chapter was in Nico's PoV.


	10. Percy Takes a Page Out of the Avengers' Book... and Frank Zhang's Too (Percy)

WHEN THEY GOT BACK DOWN to the ground level, Argus was waiting there with his hundred eyes wide open. He didn’t say anything, but his face made it clear he was freaking out.

Percy explained what they’d learned on Olympus and that it would be up to the campers to defend the home of the gods.

Argus rolled his eyes in disgust, which looked pretty psychedelic since it made his whole body swirl.

"You'd better get back to camp," Percy told him. "Guard it as best you can."

Argus pointed at Percy and raised his eyebrow quizzically.

"I'm staying," Percy said.

Argus nodded, like this answer satisfied him. He looked at Annabeth and drew a circle in the air with his finger.

"Yes," Annabeth agreed. "I think it's time."

"For what?" Magnus asked.

Argus rummaged around in the back of his van. He brought out a bronze shield and passed it to Annabeth. It looked pretty much standard issue—the same kind of round shield we always used in capture the flag. But when Annabeth set it on the ground, the reflection on the polished metal changed from sky and buildings to the Statue of Liberty—which wasn't anywhere close to us.

Percy grinned. “Sweet. One of Daedalus’ ideas?”

Annabeth nodded. “I had Beckendorf make this. The shield bends sunlight or moonlight from anywhere in the world to create a reflection. You can literally see any target under the sun or moon, as long as natural light is touching it. Look."

Everyone crowded around as Annabeth concentrated. The image zoomed and spun at first. Central Park Zoo, zooming down East 60th, past Bloomingdale’s, then turning on Third Avenue.

"Whoa," Connor Stoll said. "Back up. Zoom in right there."

"What?" Annabeth asked with a frown. "You see invaders?"

"No, right there—Dylan's Candy Bar." Connor grinned at his brother. "Dude, it's open. And everyone is asleep. Are you thinking what I'm thinking?"

"Connor!" Katie Gardner scolded. "This is serious. You are not going to loot a candy store in the middle of a war!"

"Sorry," Connor muttered, but he didn't sound very ashamed.

Annabeth passed her hand in front of the shield, and another scene popped up: FDR Drive, looking across the river at Lighthouse Park.

"This will let us see what's going on across the city," she said. "Thank you, Argus. Hopefully we'll see you back at camp… someday."

Argus grunted. He gave Percy a look that clearly meant  _ Good luck; you'll need it _ , then climbed into his van. He and the two harpy drivers swerved away, weaving around clusters of idle cars that littered the road.

Percy whistled sharply. Out of the shadows, Mrs. O’Leary charged straight at him.

“Whoa!” Percy yelped as he was tackled by the hellhound. “Mrs. O’Leary!”

Beckendorf coaxed Mrs. O’Leary off Percy so he was able to get up.

“Hey, girl,” Percy told his dog. “I need you to find Grover. He’s a satyr, and I last saw him in Central Park.”

"WOOF!"

Percy really hoped that meant  _ Sure I do!  _ And not,  _ Do you have more hot dogs? _

"I need you to find him," Percy said. "Make sure he's still awake. We're going to need his help. You got that? Find Grover!"

Mrs. O'Leary gave Percy a sloppy wet kiss, which to Percy seemed kind of unnecessary. Then she raced off north. 

Pollux crouched next to a sleeping policeman. "I don't get it. Why didn't we fall asleep too? Why just the mortals?"

"This is a huge spell," Silena said. "The bigger the spell, the easier it is to resist. If you want to sleep millions of mortals, you've got to cast a very thin layer of magic. Sleeping demigods is much harder."

“Kind of like the Mist,” Will agreed. “I mean, it works on demigods, but since we usually know about monsters and everything, it’s not very effective or easy to do.”

Michael frowned. “When did you two learn so much about magic?”

Silena blushed and looked down. “Well… you know…” she trailed off.

“Right,” Michael said, face harded.

“We can discuss this later,” Annabeth said, still looking at the shield. “Look at this.”

The bronze image showed Long Island Sound near La Guardia. A fleet of a dozen speedboats raced through the dark water toward Manhattan. Each boat was packed with demigods in full Greek armor. At the back of the lead boat, a purple banner emblazoned with a black scythe flapped in the night wind. The battle flag of Kronos.

"Scan the perimeter of the island," Percy said. "Quick."

Annabeth shifted the scene south to the harbor. A Staten Island Ferry was plowing through the waves near Ellis Island. The deck was crowded with dracaenae and a whole pack of hellhounds. Swimming in front of the ship was a pod of marine mammals. Telkhines—sea demons.

The scene shifted again: the Jersey shore, right at the entrance to the Lincoln Tunnel. A hundred assorted monsters were marching past the lanes of stopped traffic: giants with clubs, rogue Cyclopes, few fire-spitting dragons, and just to rub it in, a World War II-era Sherman tank, pushing cars out of its way as it rumbled into the tunnel.

“What about the mortals outside Manhattan?” Alex asked. “I… the whole state can’t be asleep, can it? The whole country?”

Annabeth shook her head. “No. It’s just Manhattan. There’s a radius around the island, maybe fifty miles, where time is running really, really slow. The closer you get to Manhattan, the slower it is.”

She showed them another scene—a New Jersey highway. It was Saturday evening, so the traffic wasn't as bad as it might've been on a weekday. The drivers looked awake, but the cars were moving at about one mile per hour. Birds flew overhead in slow motion.

"Kronos," Percy said. "He's slowing time."

"Hecate might be helping," Katie Gardner said. "Look how the cars are all veering away from the Manhattan exits, like they're getting a subconscious message to turn back."

“Which means we can’t expect any help from outside,” Annabeth sighed.

Percy turned to look at his friends. They looked stunned and scared. He couldn’t blame them.

“Alright,” he said. “We’re going to hold Manhattan.”

Travis choked. “Um, Percy. It was really cool and all when you told dad that we were going to do that, but, uh, Manhattan is huge. How are we supposed to hold it?”

Even Clarisse looked unsure.

"We  _ are  _ going to hold it," Percy said. "We have to."

"He's right," Annabeth said. "The gods of the wind should keep Kronos's forces away from Olympus by air, so he'll try a ground assault. We have to cut off the entrances to the island."

"They have boats," Michael pointed out.

Percy nodded. “I’ll take care of the boats. Right now, we need to take care of the bridges and tunnels.”

Annabeth groaned. “Is this the plan I’m not going to like?”

“Yeah,” Percy said. “I was thinking we could do the Wakanda thing.”

Alex’s face lit up. “Hel. Yes.”

“Oh no,” Annabeth mumbled. “Fine. How do we do that?” she said.

“Let's assume they'll try a midtown or downtown assault, at least on their first try,” Percy said. “That would be the most direct way to the Empire State Building. Which means that they’ll take the Williamsburg Bridge, Brooklyn-Battery Tunnel, Manhattan Bridge, Brooklyn Bridge, Queens-Midtown Tunnel, Holland Tunnel, Queensboro Bridge, and Lincoln Tunnel. There isn’t really that many of us, so that means we need to force the Titan’s army to use fewer entrances.”

Annabeth started to smile. “Not bad at all, Seaweed Brain. I got it.” She cleared her throat. “Okay. Travis and Connor? You two got the landmines?”

“I cannot believe they stole active landmines,” Clarisse muttered.

“We’re going to blow up the Manhattan, Brooklyn, and Queensboro Bridges,” Annabeth told them. “Travis, Connor, and Cecil, you three do that. Everyone else, listen up.”

“Michael, take Apollo’s cabin to the Williamsburg Bridge,” Percy said. “Castor and Pollux, you two go with them. Katie, Demeter’s cabin takes the Brooklyn-Battery Tunnel. Grow thorn bushes and poison ivy in the tunnel. Do whatever you have to do, but keep them out of there! The rest of Hermes’ cabin, go with them. No stopping for looting or pillaging!”

"Awwww!" the whole Hermes cabin complained.

"Silena, take the Aphrodite crew to the Queens-Midtown Tunnel."

"Oh my gods," Drew said. "Fifth Avenue is so on our way! We could accessorize, and monsters, like, totally hate the smell of Givenchy."

"No delays," Percy said. "Well… the perfume thing, if you think it'll work."

Six Aphrodite girls kissed him on the cheek in excitement.

"All right, enough!" Percy closed my eyes, trying to think of what next. "The Holland Tunnel. Beckendorf, take the Hephaestus cabin there. Use Greek fire, set traps. Whatever you've got."

He grinned. "Gladly."

“Clarisse,” Percy said, turning to the daughter of Ares, “uh, go with Silena to the Queens-Midtown tunnel. And that leaves the Lincoln Tunnel for Athena’s cabin.”

“Malcolm, you lead that,” Annabeth told her second-in-command. “Activate plan twenty-three along the way, just like I showed you. Hold that position.”

Malcolm nodded. “You got it.”

“I’ll go with Percy,” she continued. “Then we’ll join you, or we’ll go wherever we’re needed.”

Somebody in the back of the group said, "No detours, you two."

“Yeah, do you need a chaperone?” Alex asked curiously. “I can do that. I chaperone all the time.”

There was a lot of giggling.

Percy rolled his eyes. “Keep in touch with cell phones.”

"We don't have cell phones," Silena protested.

Percy reached down, picked up some snoring lady's BlackBerry, and tossed it to Silena. "You do now. You all know Annabeth's number, right? If you need us, pick up a random phone and call us. Use it once, drop it, then borrow another one if you have to. That should make it harder for the monsters to zero in on you."

Everyone grinned as though they liked this idea.

Travis cleared his throat. "Uh, if we find a really nice phone—"

"No, you can't keep it," Percy said.

"Aw, man."

“Wait,” Magnus said, looking like something had just occurred to him. “There’s got to be mortals on the bridges. How are three kids supposed to get all the mortals off the bridge before they blow it up?”

Percy bit back a curse. “Okay. Um, Travis, take half of your cabin to the Queensboro Bridge. Connor, take the other half to the Brooklyn and Manhattan Bridges.”

“Actually,” a girl’s voice cut in, “we’ll take care of the Brooklyn and Manhattan Bridges.”

Percy turned with a wide grin on his face to see a band of thirty adolescent girls crossing Fifth Avenue. They wore white shirts, silvery camouflage pants, and combat boots. They all had swords at their sides, quivers on their backs, and bows at the ready. A pack of white timber wolves milled around their feet, and many of the girls had hunting falcons on their arms.

The girl in the lead had spiky black hair and a black leather jacket. She wore a silver circlet on her head like a princess's tiara, which didn't match her skull earrings or her Death to Barbie T-shirt showing a little Barbie doll with an arrow through its head.

"Thalia!" Annabeth cried.

The daughter of Zeus grinned. "The Hunters of Artemis, reporting for duty."

There were hugs and greetings all around… or at least Thalia was friendly.

“Good to see you,” Percy told Thalia. “And you’ve got like twice as many Hunters now. Where have you been?”

Thalia laughed. “Long, long story. I bet my adventures were more dangerous than yours, Jackson."

"Complete lie," Percy said.

"We'll see," she promised. "After this is over, you, Annabeth, and me: cheeseburgers and fries at that hotel on West 57th."

"Le Parker Meridien," Percy said. "You're on.”

Thalia glanced over to see Magnus. “You’re still hanging with these two love birds?” she asked, jerking her head at Percy and Annabeth.

“Just can’t seem to leave,” Magnus agreed. He gestured to Alex. “You remember Alex, right?”

“The girl who yelled at the gods,” Thalia said with a faint smile. “Yeah, I remember.” She winked. “If you ever want to get away from those three, you can always join the Hunters.”

Alex shrugged. “Nah. Besides, what would Magnus do without me?”

“Probably live a longer life,” Magnus said dryly.

“What are you talking about? I’ve saved your life a bunch of times.”

“You cut my head off.”

“Saved your life, didn’t it?”

Thalia blinked. “Um…”

“Thanks, Thalia,” Percy said loudly.

Thalia stared at Magnus and Alex for a moment before returning her attention to Percy. “Yeah, sure. Those monsters won’t know what hit them. Where should we go once the mortals are moved?”

“Brooklyn-Battery Tunnel, Holland Tunnel, and Lincoln Tunnel,” Annabeth said. “Hermes cabin, once you’re done with the Queensboro Bridge, head over to the Queens-Midtown Tunnel. If they need help, stay there, if not, keep going to the Williamsburg Bridge.”

Percy took a deep breath. “You’re the greatest heroes of this millennium,” he said. “It doesn’t matter how many monsters come at you. Fight bravely, and we will win.” He raised Riptide and shouted, “FOR OLYMPUS!”

“FOR OLYMPUS!” the demigods and Hunters echoed. Their voices echoed off the buildings of Midtown. For a moment it sounded brave, but it died quickly in the silence of ten million sleeping New Yorkers.

“Hunters, move out!” Thalia yelled. She slapped her silver bracelet, and the shield Aegis spiraled into full form. The golden head of Medusa molded in the center was so horrible, the campers all backed away. The Hunters took off down the avenue, followed by their wolves and falcons.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm no strategist but in my mind taking the number of entrances down so they don't have to spread their forces so thin is a good plan. Like please correct me if I'm wrong, but for the sake of the story, this is what I'm going with.


	11. Blowing Up Bridges Seems Kind of Illegal (Magnus)

THE STREETS WERE EERILY quiet as Magnus went with the rest of the Hermes cabin to the Queensboro Bridge. The Aphrodite and Ares cabins traveled with them since the Queens-Midtown Tunnel was on the way.

“Stop here!” one of the Aphrodite girls, Drew, called out when they reached Fifth Avenue.

Clarisse rolled her eyes. “Gods, you’re actually taking perfume?”

“Drew’s right,” Silena pointed out. “Monsters hate Givenchy. We can make little bombs of it to throw at the monsters. It will disorient them enough to give us an advantage.”

“Fine,” Clarisse allowed grudgingly. “Get your perfume. Whatever.”

Alex couldn’t stand still as they waited for the Aphrodite kids to finish raiding the perfume store. She glanced up and down the street anxiously and paced back and forth.

Finally, Magnus spoke up.

“You okay?” he asked. “You seem kind of… I don’t know…” he waved his hand around.

Alex paused. “I’m okay. I mean, I love Percy’s plan. It’s actually a good plan. But it’s getting late and if I was the Titan army, I’d attack after nightfall which is in an hour or two. We have to move all the mortals off the bridge, rig the bridge with explosives, and run like Hel to the Queens-Midtown Tunnel to help if needed. If they’re good then we have to sprint to the Williamsburg Bridge. And…” she lowered her voice. “And I can’t stop thinking about the prophecy.”

_ The son of Poseidon’s choice draws near, _

_ Foreseen by the mortal who sees clear, _

_ The hero’s fate to remain unchanged, _

_ But the traitors’ lives can still be saved. _

Magnus couldn’t stop thinking about it either. Percy and Annabeth weren’t as concerned as Magnus would have expected them to be, though they did seem a little defeated by the prophecy. Of course, they already knew what the prophecy said, but that didn’t mean that the meaning could have changed.

The one thing Magnus couldn’t figure out was how Percy was supposed to survive this. Nico di Angelo obviously had the right idea with trying to make Percy invincible, so maybe that worked and saved Percy’s life.

Or maybe it didn’t.

The hero was supposed to have his soul reaped by a cursed blade according to the Great Prophecy. And according to Alex’s prophecy, the hero’s fate wasn’t going to change at all.

All this was giving him a headache.

He wished Percy and Annabeth would have given them more information about this battle and the prophecy. He could have sworn Annabeth said something about this battle to him when she first told him about the Greek world. Though after the fact he had been much more focused on the fact that she and her friends had battled the earth.

“Time’s up,” Clarisse barked loudly to the giggling Aphrodite girls.

“Ugh, fine,” one of them scowled.

Once the bottles of perfume had been shoved into shopping bags and looped around the arms of the Aphrodite kids, the group of demigods continued on their way.

Everything about the silent streets set Magnus on edge. It was like a scene from a really bad horror movie. The group of tweens and teens walking down the streets to fight monsters and everything is quiet until something jumps out at them and kills most of the side characters, leaving the main characters screaming before they too perish. Usually in very gruesome fashion.

Magnus hated horror movies like that.

He got to the point where the next time Alex spoke, he jumped and reached for Jack.

“I’m going to- Magnus, what are you doing?” Alex asked.

Magnus let go of the pendant, face red in embarrassment. “I don’t like the silence, okay? You surprised me.”

Alex tried to hide her grin, but Magnus saw it anyway.

“Anyway, I was going to say that I’m going to fly up and see what our path looks like,” she continued. “Magnus is right about one thing. It’s kind of unnerving and while we should expect an attack, we don’t need to accidentally injure each other because we’re all on high alert.”

Clarisse nodded. “You’re right. Expecting attacks is good, but we need level heads. We’ll keep going on this path while you scout ahead,” she told Alex. “If you see anything strange, let us know.”

Alex nodded once. Seconds later, an eagle shot up into the sky. Magnus watched Alex fly away until she disappeared between the skyscrapers.

Magnus fell into step with Travis and Connor Stoll as they explained the plan to the rest of the Hermes cabin.

“Cecil and us will rig the explosives,” Connor said, gesturing to himself and his brother. “The rest of you guys should focus on the mortals.”

“We should make sure no mortals are in danger of driving onto the bridge once the spell is lifted,” Holly Victor suggested.

Travis nodded. “Yeah. If you can, put all the cars in park and maybe leave the keys in the cupholder or something. After that, bring all the mortals back towards our side of the bridge. We’ll leave them somewhere out of the way.”

“Inside a store or restaurant,” Chris offered. “We should keep them off the streets if we can. I know this army and the monsters aren’t going to care if the mortals get in their way. Some of the demigods might, but the monsters outnumber them. I doubt they’d speak up if they knew their chances of getting killed by the monsters were high.”

That was a cheerful thought.

They’d walked about ten blocks when Alex finally returned.

“Anything?” Clarisse asked.

Alex shook her head. “Nothing. On our side anyway. I don’t know about the other side. I couldn’t see any of the Titan’s army which is good and bad.”

“Go with good,” Clarisse advised. “Means the Titan’s aren’t here yet. We still have time.”

They arrived at the Queens-Midtown Tunnel.

Clarisse made a shooing motion. “Go! There’s no time to waste. You need to get that bridge down.” With that, she started barking out orders to her siblings and the Aphrodite kids.

Magnus picked up the pace as he, Alex, and the Hermes cabin headed for the Queensboro Bridge.

“I don’t suppose you two can grant us an easy victory?” Cecil muttered to two girls, Holly and Laurel.

Laurel made a face. “That’s like asking for a participation award. Honestly. If you want to win, then you have to put in the work. Mom would be insulted if she heard us asking her that.”

Not all the kids in the Hermes cabin were children of Hermes as Magnus had learned not too long after coming to Camp Half-Blood to stay. Holly and Laurel Victor, for example, were daughters of Nike. Since Hermes was the god of travelers, all the unclaimed kids or children of minor gods and goddesses were placed in Cabin 11 with the Hermes kids.

Nowadays, most of the kids in the Hermes cabin were actually children of Hermes since a good amount of the unclaimed demigods and children of minor deities had decided to leave Camp and support the Titans.

That small fact made things awkward with Holly and Laurel being the daughters of a minor goddess and also being two demigods who hadn’t turned to the Titans as far as anyone knew, and Magnus and Alex being unclaimed demigods who hadn’t turned to the Titan’s as far as anyone knew. Newsflash. Neither Magnus nor Alex had decided to support the Titans.

The only reason Magnus was even bothering to fight in the Greek war was because of Annabeth. The Greeks weren’t his gods. 

Neither was the Norse come to think of it. Magnus hadn’t actually taken the time to reflect on it, but he was pretty sure he still considered himself atheist.

Especially now that he knew the Norse, the Greeks, and at least Jesus (unless Thor was making that up) existed together, he was pretty confident there was, in fact, no actual supreme being or beings completely in charge.

An unsatisfyingly satisfying thought.

By the time they reached the bridge, the sun was starting to cast orange and pink and purple shadows in the sky. The sun was almost down and when it finally set and it was totally dark, the Titan’s would make their move. If the bridge wasn’t collapsed by then and all the mortals moved safely away… well, Magnus didn’t want to think about that.

Of course, his brain had no trouble creatively showing him exactly what would happen if the bridge wasn’t collasped by nightfall and the mortals weren’t moved safely away.

Sometimes he really hated his brain.

Travis, Connor, and Cecil wasted no time at all getting the landmines they’d stolen from the Ares cabin prepped for detonation. How they were managing to turn pressure sensitive explosives into explosives controlled by a trigger was beyond Magnus, and he didn’t really want to know how they knew how to do that. Worse, he didn’t want to know that they  _ didn’t _ know how to do that.

Magnus started hauling unconscious people back towards a fancy restaurant he’d seen near the bridge. It was long and tedious work. The Queensboro Bridge was fairly long and he had to walk back and forth supporting one if not two deadweight bodies.

Alex was enjoying herself at least. Whenever Magnus looked over at her, she was some kind of animal (literally) and she was using the animals’ abilities to her advantage. Such as a large elephant picking up a few people with her trunk and easily crossing the length of the bridge in seconds.

Show off.

Travis, Connor, and Cecil finished rigging the landmines-turned-bombs long before the others were done dragging sleeping mortals off the bridge.

Magnus felt kind of bad that they were blowing up the cars and belongings of these mortals. The mortals would wake up eventually to find that they’d been dumped in a random restaurant or store, and their car and possessions in the car had fallen into the waters below due to an exploded or collapsed or whatever bridge.

Then he hoped that the Mist or glamour had some really good explanation for three bridges in Manhattan collapsing because the last thing they needed was for the mortals to freak out about a mysterious terrorist organization that can put a whole city to sleep and blow up the bridges.

The more Magnus thought about this, the less and less he liked Percy’s plan.

“Everybody get clear!” Travis shouted once they finished moving all the mortals.

Magnus didn’t hesitate to move far, far away from the bridge.

Connor pressed a button on some trigger and the next thing Magnus knew, a loud  _ BOOM! _ rocked the city and the Queensboro Bridge was gone. The only thing that remained was scattered debris and dark smoke.

“We just blew up a bridge,” Cecil whispered with wide eyes. “I can’t believe we just blew up a bridge.”

Alex gave him a strange look. “Didn’t you help rig this?”

“Well, yeah, but rigging it and actually blowing it up are two different things,” Cecil muttered. “It’s a lot more real now that I can see what I did. What in Hades are the mortals going to think?”

“Hopefully nothing bad,” Magnus sighed. “Maybe the gods will fix it. You know. Assuming they and we all come out of this alive.”

Another cheerful thought.

“It’s getting dark now,” Connor said. “We should head back to Queens-Midtown.”

Magnus didn’t argue. Especially not when he heard the furious roars coming from the opposite side of the now destroyed bridge.

* * *

By the time they reached the Queens-Midtown Tunnel, a battle was raging in full swing.

Magnus could hear Clarisse shouting orders over the roar of the monsters and battle. She looked utterly  _ terrifying _ in her armor. It was a wonder the monsters didn’t all just turn tail and run away.

As it was, the demigods were holding their own. They were actually winning from what Magnus could see.

Chris inhaled sharply. “We should help them.” His eyes were on Clarisse, his girlfriend.

“We can handle this!” Silena shouted to them. “Go help the Apollo kids!”

“What about you guys?” Travis called back

“We’re fine!” Silena yelled. “Now go!”

Chris hesitated. He glanced at Travis and Connor. “You guys go. I’m staying here.”

Connor looked like he wanted to protest, but Travis nodded.

Chris took off towards the Ares and Aphrodite kids. He drew his sword as he ran and then leapt into battle side by side them against the monsters.

Magnus glanced at Alex, glad that they were in the same group for this battle.

Alex caught his eye. She glared at him for a moment before her eyes softened and looked away.

They were most definitely complicated. Before the whole mess with Percy and Annabeth and the rest of the Greeks happened, they weren’t really defined as anything. There was something there. They knew it. Their friends knew it.

Still, Magnus didn’t really want to think about how he’d feel if he and Alex had been in Chris and Clarisse’s position. Fighting monsters on the opposite sides of Manhattan, unable to know if the other was still alive.

Alex, he knew, could take care of herself, but that didn’t stop him from worrying.

He shook himself out of his thoughts as they took off in the direction of the Williamsburg Bridge.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I would like to see a mini story about Thor and Jesus please, Rick.
> 
> Anyway, tomorrow is Percy's birthday and I have some stuff planned to post. A few one-shots, a couple more chapters of this, and something I started writing at like one in the morning and only continued to write when it was like hours past my bedtime. Probably stopped writing around four in the morning. Good stuff!


	12. Another One Bites the Dust (Percy)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Percy chapter for Percy's birthday!

MOVING THROUGH THE STREETS of Manhattan was slow going.

Percy and Annabeth had relieved an unconscious courier of his nice red Vespa and zigzagged through the cars along Broadway. The only sounds were occasional cell phones ringing—like they were calling out to each other, as if New York had turned into a giant electronic aviary.

Every so often they came across pedestrians who'd fallen asleep right in front of a car, and they moved the pedestrians just to be safe. Once they stopped to extinguish a pretzel vendor's cart that had caught on fire. A few minutes later they had to rescue a baby carriage that was rolling aimlessly down the street. It turned out there was no baby in it—just somebody's sleeping poodle. Go figure. They parked it safely in a doorway and kept riding.

Percy slowed the scooter to a halt in the middle of East 23rd. He and Annabeth ran into Madison Square Park to stand at the base of a bronze statue.

“William H. Seward,” Percy remembered.

Annabeth gave him an approving look. She climbed up onto the pedestal and pressed the tip of Seward’s boot. The statue stood up, quill and paper ready.

“Hello, William,” Annabeth said.

"Bill," Percy suggested.

"Bill... Oh, shut up," Annabeth told him.

The statue tilted its head, looking at them with blank metal eyes.

Annabeth cleared her throat. "Hello, er, Governor Seward. Command sequence: Daedalus Twenty-three. Defend Manhattan. Begin Activation."

Seward jumped off his pedestal. He hit the ground so hard his shoes cracked the sidewalk. Then he went clanking off toward the east.

"He's probably going to wake up Confucius," Annabeth guessed.

“Right,” Percy agreed. “The dude on the one street. Got it.”

Annabeth rolled her eyes. “Come on. We need to get those ships sunk before nightfall.”

A ball of green light exploded in the evening sky. Greek fire, somewhere over the East River.

“Yeah, let’s hurry,” Percy said quickly.

They ran for the Vespa and drove down the silent streets until they reached Battery Park.

“I’ll be back in a flash,” Percy promised Annabeth.

She sighed. “Just be careful.”

Percy nodded and clambered down the shoreline and waded into the water. If he wasn’t the son of a sea god, Percy would be willing to bet that the water in New York Harbor would be enough to make him grow a third eye or something.

When he reached the bottom, Percy tried to find the spot where the two rivers’ currents seemed equal. Then he cupped his hands around his mouth.

"HEY!" Percy shouted in his best underwater voice. The sound echoed in the darkness. "I heard you guys are so polluted you're embarrassed to show your faces. Is that true?"

A cold current rippled through the bay, churning up plumes of garbage and silt.

"I heard the East River is more toxic," he continued, "but the Hudson smells worse. Or is it the other way around?"

The water shimmered. Something powerful and angry was watching now. Percy could sense its presence… two presences to be precise.

Two giant forms appeared in front of Percy. At first they were just dark brown columns of silt, denser than the water around them. Then they grew legs, arms, and scowling faces. The creature on the left looked disturbingly like a telkhine. His face was wolfish. His body was vaguely like a seal's—sleek black with flipper hands and feet. His eyes glowed radiation green. The dude on the right was more humanoid. He was dressed in rags and seaweed, with a chain-mail coat made of bottle caps and old plastic six-pack holders. His face was blotchy with algae, and his beard was overgrown. His deep blue eyes burned with anger.

The seal, the god of the East River, said, "Are you trying to get yourself killed, kid? Or are you just extra stupid?"

The bearded spirit of the Hudson scoffed. "You're the expert on stupid, East."

"Watch it, Hudson," East growled. "Stay on your side of the island and mind your business."

"Or what? You'll throw another garbage barge at me?" 

They floated toward each other, ready to fight.

"Hold it!" Percy yelled. "We've got a bigger problem."

"The kid's right," East snarled. "Let's both kill him, then we'll fight each other."

"Sounds good," Hudson said.

Percy drew the water around him into a shield as a thousand scraps of garbage surged off the bottom of the rivers and flew straight at him from both directions. The debris bounced off harmlessly. Only one piece got through—a big chunk of glass that hit his chest, but it shattered against his skin due the Achilles curse..

The two river gods stared at Percy.

"Son of Poseidon?" East asked.

Percy nodded.

"Took a dip in the Styx?" Hudson asked.

"Yep."

They both made disgusted sounds.

"Well, that's perfect," East said. "Now how do we kill him?"

"We could electrocute him," Hudson mused. "If I could just find some jumper cables—"

Percy sighed in exasperation. “Look. Kronos’ army is invading Manhattan.”

"Don't you think we know that?" East asked. "I can feel his boats right now. They're almost across."

"Yep," Hudson agreed. "I got some filthy monsters crossing my waters too."

“So stop them,” Percy said. “Drown them. Sink their boats.”

"Why should we?" Hudson grumbled. "So they invade Olympus. What do we care?"

"Because I can pay you," Percy said, taking out the sand dollar Poseidon had given him for his birthday.

The river gods' eyes widened.

"It's mine!" East said. "Give it here, kid, and I promise none of Kronos's scum are getting across the East River."

"Forget that," Hudson said. "That sand dollar's mine, unless you want me to let all those ships cross the Hudson."

“A compromise,” Percy said, breaking the sand dollar in half. A ripple of clean fresh water spread out from the break, as if all the pollution in the bay were being dissolved.

"You each get half," he said. "In exchange, you keep all of Kronos's forces away from Manhattan."

"Oh, man," Hudson whimpered, reaching out for the sand dollar. "It's been so long since I was clean."

"The power of Poseidon," East River murmured. "He's a jerk, but he sure knows how to sweep pollution away."

They looked at each other, then spoke as one: "It's a deal."

Percy gave them each a sand-dollar half, which they held reverently. “The invaders?” he prompted.

East flicked his hand. "They just got sunk."

Hudson snapped his fingers. "Bunch of hellhounds just took a dive."

"Thank you," Percy said. "Stay clean."

As he rose toward the surface, East called out, "Hey, kid, any time you got a sand dollar to spend, come on back. Assuming you live."

"Curse of Achilles," Hudson snorted. "They always think that'll save them, don't they?"

"If only he knew," East agreed. They both laughed, dissolving into the water.

Percy really hated these river spirits for saying that. It didn’t help any that he was starting to doubt the effectiveness of taking on the curse.

Just as Percy got back on the shore, Annabeth’s phone rang. She answered it quickly and put it on speaker.

“-love of Zeus,” someone’s voice swore, though it was muffled slightly. Probably he had covered the microphone. “Don’t just stand there! Shoot them!”

“Hello?” Annabeth asked.

“Annabeth? Annabeth, it’s Michael,” the voice said. “We’ve got a problem. Second army is coming and the Minotaur is leading. We need reinforcements.”

The call ended abruptly which Percy didn’t blame Michael for doing. He couldn’t waste time on friendly goodbyes before hanging up with a battle going on.

“The bridges are all taken care of,” Annabeth told Percy, worry shining in her eyes. “Not too long after you went under I saw the explosions.”

“Good,” Percy said in relief. He whistled sharply and minutes later, two dark shapes circled out of the sky.

_ Yo, boss _ . Blackjack landed at a trot, his friend Porkpie right behind him.  _ Man, I thought those wind gods were gonna knock us to Pennsylvania until we said we were with you! _

"Thanks for coming," Percy told him.

Blackjack whinnied. _ Where to? _

"We need to get to the Williamsburg Bridge," Percy said.

Blackjack lowered his neck.  _ You're darn right, boss. We flew over it on the way here, and it don't look good. Hop on!  _

On the way to the bridge, a knot formed in the pit of Percy’s stomach. The Williamsburg Bridge brought back a lot of bad thoughts. He hadn’t been sure about sending the Apollo kids to defend it at first, but at least if he sent them, he would know what he had to do to stop anything bad from happening.

It was well after midnight by the time they reached the battle, but the bridge blazed with light. Cars were burning. Arcs of fire streamed in both directions as flaming arrows and spears sailed through the air.

The Apollo campers were retreating. They would hide behind cars and snipe at the approaching army, setting off explosive arrows and dropping caltrops in the roat, building fiery barricades wherever they could, dragging sleeping drivers out of their cars to get them out of harm’s way.

Percy really regretted not sending a few Hunters here for backup.

“There!” Annabeth called from the back of her pegasus.

The Minotaur was right in the middle of the invading forces, dressed for battle. From the waist down, he wore standard Greek battle gear—a kilt-like apron of leather and metal flaps, bronze greaves covering his legs, and tightly wrapped leather sandals. His top was all bull—hair and hide and muscle leading to a head so large he should've toppled over just from the weight of his horns. He was ten feet tall at least. A double-bladed axe was strapped to his back, but he was too impatient to use it. As soon as he saw Percy circling overhead, he bellowed and picked up a white limousine.

"Blackjack, dive!" Percy yelled.

_ What? _ The pegasus asked.  _ No way could he… Holy horse feed! _

The limo came sailing towards them forcing Annabeth and Porkpie to swerve to the left while Percy and Blackjack dove under the limo. The limo sailed over Percy’s head, missing by maybe two inches. It cleared the suspension lines of the bridge and fell toward the East River.

Monsters jeered and shouted, and the Minotaur picked up another car. 

"Drop us behind the lines with the Apollo cabin," Percy told Blackjack. "Stay in earshot but get out of danger!"

_ I ain't gonna argue, boss! _

Blackjack swooped down behind an overturned school bus, where a couple of campers were hiding. Annabeth and Percy leaped off as soon as their pegasi's hooves touched the pavement. Then Blackjack and Porkpie soared into the night sky.

Michael ran up to them. He had a bandaged cut on his arm. His ferrety face was smeared with soot and his quiver was almost empty, but he was smiling like he was having a great time.

"Glad you could join us," he said. "Where are the other reinforcements?"

"For now, we're it," Percy said.

“The bridges went down half an hour ago,” Annabeth added. “If Ares and Aphrodite don’t need help, Hermes should be here soon.”

“If we can’t hold them off until then, we’re dead,” Michael said. He cast a sidelong glance at Percy. “Now would be a great time to use the flying chariot if, you know, Apollo had it.”

“I have a feeling you still would have left it behind,” Percy muttered under his breath.

Michael opened his mouth, maybe to ask what Percy had said, but his attention was drawn off to the enemy. “Here come the uglies!” he said, drawing an arrow and launching it toward the enemy. The arrow made a screaming sound as it flew.

When it landed, it unleashed a blast like a power chord on an electric guitar magnified through the world's largest speakers. The nearest cars exploded. Monsters dropped their weapons and clasped their ears in pain. Some ran. Others disintegrated on the spot.

"That was my last sonic arrow," Michael said. He grinned wickedly. "Loud music can be bad for you. Unfortunately, it doesn't always kill."

Sure enough, most monsters were regrouping, shaking off their confusion.

"We have to fall back," Michael said. "I've got Kayla and Austin setting traps farther down the bridge."

Percy drew his sword. “Or we can drive them back to Brooklyn.”

Annabeth shot him a warning look.

Michael laughed. "How do you plan to do that?"

“Annabeth, Michael, coordinate the defensive line,” Percy said. “I’ll distract the monsters. You group up here. Move the sleeping mortals out of the way. Then you can start picking off monsters while I keep them focused on me. If anybody can do all that, you can.”

Michael snorted. "Thanks a lot."

Annabeth looked at Will. “Will…”

Will shrugged. “What do you want  _ me _ to say? It’s a good plan just…” he hesitated. “Don’t get cocky. Please. Promise you won’t get cocky.”

Percy’s eyes flitted to Michael for a millisecond. He nodded. “Got it.” He gave Annabeth a small smile. “Look. They can’t hurt me unless they get my weak spot. Let me do this.”

She nodded reluctantly. "All right. Get moving. But you better come back alive."

“I told you,” Percy grinned. “You’re not getting away from me. Never again.”

Annabeth kissed him and then pushed him towards the oncoming enemy.

When the Minotaur saw Percy, his eyes burned with hate. He bellowed—a sound that was somewhere between a yell, a moo, and a really loud belch.

"Hey, Beef Boy," Percy shouted back. "Didn't I kill you already?"

The Minotaur pounded his fist into the hood of a Lexus, and it crumpled like aluminum foil.

A few dracaenae threw flaming javelins at Percy. He knocked them aside. A hellhound lunged, and Percy sidestepped, stabbing it as he moved. The hellhound disintegrated into dust and fur.

More monsters surged forward—snakes and giants and telkhines—but the Minotaur roared at them, and they backed off.

"One on one?" Percy called. "Just like old times?"

The Minotaur's nostrils quivered. He seriously needed to keep a pack of Aloe Vera Kleenex in his armor pocket, because that nose was wet and red and pretty gross. He unstrapped his axe and swung it around.

It was beautiful in a harsh I’m-going-to-gut-you-like-a-fish kind of way. Each of its twin blades was shaped like an omega: Ω—the last letter of the Greek alphabet. Maybe that was because the axe would be the last thing his victims ever saw. The shaft was about the same height as the Minotaur, bronze wrapped in leather. Tied around the base of each blade were lots of bead necklaces. Camp Half-Blood necklaces taken from defeated demigods. That angered Percy beyond belief.

Percy raised his sword as the monster army cheered for the Minotaur. The cheers died off when Percy dodged the Minotaur’s first swing and sliced his axe in half, right between the handholds.

"Moo?" the Minotaur grunted.

Percy shouted defiantly as he spun and kicked the Minotaur in the snout. The half-man, half-bull staggered backward, trying to regain his footing, then lowered his head to charge. Riptide flashed as Percy swung, slicing off one horn, then the other.

In the back of Percy’s mind, he registered someone shouting, “What a babe!”

He really hoped that was Jack talking about Riptide. Jack’s presence would mean Magnus, and consequently the Hermes cabin, had arrived as backup. Although, he still wasn’t sure if he approved Jack and Riptide’s possible relationship.

Percy was shaken from his thoughts by the Minotaur reaching out for him, forcing Percy to roll away. He picked up half of the Minotaur’s broken axe and ran for the edge of the bridge.

The Minotaur must've smelled victory. His minions cheered. At the edge of the bridge, Percy turned and braced the axe against the railing to receive the charge. The Minotaur didn't even slow down.

_ CRUNCH _ .

The Minotaur looked down in surprise at the axe handle sprouting from his breastplate.

"Thanks for playing," Percy told him.

Percy lifted the Minotaur by his legs and tossed him over the side of the bridge. Even as he fell, he was disintegrating, turning back into dust, his essence returning to Tartarus. Percy hoped the Minotaur wasn’t one to hold a grudge. It was unlikely though.

Percy turned toward the rest of the army. He raised his sword and charged.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I love Jack. Okay. Next chapter will be up in a moment!
> 
> Happy Birthday, Percy!


	13. A Singing Sword Saves the Day (Percy)

EVERYTHING WAS A BLUR OF swords, axes, arrows, and dust.

Percy sliced through armor like it was made of paper. Snake women exploded. Hellhounds melted to shadow. He slashed and stabbed and whirled, and definitely laughed once or twice—a crazy laugh that scared him as much as it did his enemies. Percy was aware of the Apollo campers behind him shooting arrows, disrupting every attempt by the enemy to rally. Finally, the monsters turned and fled—about twenty left alive out of two hundred.

Percy followed with the Apollo and Hermes campers at his heels.

"Yes!" yelled Michael Yew. "That's what I'm talking about!"

They drove the monsters back toward the Brooklyn side of the bridge. The sky was growing pale in the east. Percy could see the toll stations ahead. 

"Percy!" Annabeth yelled. "You've already routed them. Pull back! We're overextended!"

“We can get them all!” Michael argued.

Percy nodded in agreement, despite knowing who waited for them at the other side.

“No!” Will shouted. “Don’t get cocky! Percy!  _ Percy, you promised! _ You promised!”

_ You promised! _

Suddenly, he was fourteen and back at Camp Half-Blood standing in the snow with Nico. Nico yelling at him and screaming at him.

_ You promised! _

Percy shook himself and stopped charging forward. He turned around to face the Apollo and Hermes campers. “Fall back,” he said.

Michael looked confused. “What? Why? We can get them now! There’s only twenty of them!” His face faltered as he caught sight of something behind Percy.

Percy turned to see Kronos attop a skeletal horse with thirty or forty other demigods also on skeletal horses.

“I said, fall back,” Percy said.

The monsters they'd been pursuing reached the Titan's line and were absorbed into the new force. Kronos gazed in our direction. He was a quarter mile away, but Percy could see him smile.

The Titan lord's men drew their swords and charged. The hooves of their skeletal horses thundered against the pavement. The archers shot a volley, bringing down several of the enemy, but they just kept riding.

“Retreat!” Percy shouted.

A lion leapt over Percy and at the incoming demigods. It slashed at the skeletal horses, turning them to piles of bones and knocked demigods from their mounts.

Percy blinked for a moment before remembering Alex was here. Despite that, it was only a matter of seconds before the army was on Percy.

The Hermes and Apollo cabins retreated, Michael and his archers firing off arrows every so often to cover Percy and Annabeth who’d stayed right beside him, fighting with her knife and mirrored shield as they slowly backed up the bridge.

Kronos's cavalry swirled around them, slashing and yelling insults. The Titan himself advanced  leisurely, like he had all the time in the world.

Percy tried to wound the demigods, not kill. One line of Alex’s prophecy rang in his ears.

_ But traitors’ lives can still be saved _ .

Percy would save every life he could manage. Even if it slowed him down. These demigods had fallen under Kronos's spell. All Percy had to do was show them a better life.

By now, the demigods had figured out that it would be safer for them to dismount and fight on foot.

Annabeth and Percy stayed shoulder to shoulder, facing opposite directions. A dark shape passed over Percy, and he dared to glance up. Blackjack, Porkpie, and another pegasus were swooping in, kicking our enemies in the helmets and flying away like very large kamikaze pigeons. The other pegasus had to be Alex, Percy decided after a brief glance around the bridge revealed that the lion had disappeared.

He’d almost made it to the middle of the bridge when he felt a chill down his spin. Too late, Percy remembered what that meant. Behind him, there was a clang like metal on metal.

“Hola, señor!” Jack trilled behind him.

Percy turned to see Jack blocking a knife. Magnus held Jack’s hilt with a surprised look on his face. He glanced at Percy and the surprised look quickly morphed into a I-totally-meant-to-do-that-you’re-welcome look.

The demigod holding the knife stumbled back. Percy locked eyes with him. Ethan Nakamura. Percy slammed him in the face with the hilt of his sword so hard he dented Ethan’s helm.

“Get back!” Percy shouted, slashing the air in a wide arc. On either side of him, Percy could see Annabeth brandishing her own knife dangerously and Magnus awkwardly holding a singing Jack. This time a rousing rendition of Ke$ha’s Tik Tok.

Jack’s apparent ability to sing was causing some of the enemy demigods to glance at him nervously.

Kronos towered over Percy on his skeletal horse, his scythe in one hand. He studied the scene with narrowed eyes. "Bravely fought, Percy Jackson," he said. "But it's time to surrender… or your friends die."

“Blackjack!” Percy yelled.

As fast as light, Blackjack and Porkpie swooped down and clamped their teeth on the straps of Annabeth’s and Magnus’s armor. They soared away, back towards the Apollo and Hermes campers before the enemy could react.

Kronos snarled. "Someday soon, I am going to make pegasus soup. But in the meantime…" He dismounted, his scythe glistening in the dawn light. "I'll settle for another dead demigod."

Percy met his first strike with Riptide. The impact shook the entire bridge, but Percy held his ground. Kronos's smile wavered.

With a yell, Percy kicked Kronos’s legs out from under him. His scythe skittered across the pavement. Percy stabbed downward, but Kronos rolled aside and regained his footing. His scythe flew back to his hands.

"So…" Kronos studied Percy, looking mildly annoyed. "You had the courage to visit the Styx. I had to pressure Luke in many ways to convince him. If only you had supplied my host body instead… But no matter. I am still more powerful. I am a TITAN." He struck the bridge with the butt of his scythe, and a wave of pure force blasted Percy backward. Cars went careening. Demigods—even Luke's own men—were blown off the edge of the bridge. Suspension cords whipped around, and Percy skidded halfway back to Manhattan.

He got unsteadily to his feet. The remaining Apollo and Hermes campers had made it to the end of the bridge, except for Michael, who was perched on one of the suspension cables a few yards away from Percy. His last arrow was notched in his bow.

"Michael, go!" Percy screamed.

"Percy, the bridge!" he called. "It's already weak!"

“I know!” Percy shouted. “GO!”

“MICHAEL!” Will called. “Get off the bridge!”

“GO!” Percy yelled. He turned back to face Kronos.

Desperately praying Michael had listened, Percy raised his sword and stabbed Riptide down into the bridge. The magic blade sank to its hilt in asphalt. Salt water shot from the crack like a geyser. Percy pulled out his blade and the fissure grew. The bridge shook and began to crumble. Chunks the size of houses fell into the East River. Kronos's demigods cried out in alarm and scrambled backward. Some were knocked off their feet.

Within a few seconds, a fifty-foot chasm opened in the Williamsburg Bridge between Kronos and Percy.

The vibrations died. Kronos's men crept to the edge and looked at the hundred-and-thirty-foot drop into the river.

Kronos studied the problem. He looked behind him at the rising sun, then smiled across the chasm. He raised his scythe in a mock salute. "Until this evening, Jackson." He mounted his horse, whirled around, and galloped back to Brooklyn, followed by his warriors.

Percy squeezed his eyes shut as he turned.  _ Please, _ he prayed.  _ Please let him be alive _ .

He opened his eyes. Michael was gone. Percy’s heart sank.

“No,” he said quietly.

“Magnus!” Annabeth shouted.

Percy looked in Annabeth’s direction. She was kneeling next to a body. As he got closer it became clear that it was Michael.

Magnus hurried over. “I can fix him.”

Annabeth looked up at Percy. “He hit his head when the bridge started to shake.”

Magnus finished healing Michael. He stood up. “He might be unconscious for a while. He had a pretty bad concussion.”

Percy let out a breath. “Thank the gods. Okay. We need to regroup. Kronos will attack again this evening. Until then, we need to regroup and figure out our next move.” He jumped as his mom’s phone rang.

The LCD display showed an unknown phone number, but it was probably a demigod calling on a borrowed phone, so Percy answered it.

“Hello?”

“It’s Thalia,” the Hunter’s voice said. “Kronos’s army retreated. We’ve all gathered at the Plaza Hotel. How are things on your end?”

“Could be better,” Percy said. “Michael’s knocked out and there’s a few minor injuries.”

“You’re with the Apollo kids? Can you hurry? We need some more medics. Nothing too serious, but they  _ are _ better with healing than most demigods.”

“On our way.” Percy hung up and looked at Will. “Can you carry Michael on Porkpie? They’ve gathered at the Plaza Hotel.”

Will nodded. “I can do that.”

“Great. Alex,” Percy said, turning to face the green haired girl.

Alex crossed her arms. “No way.”

“We need to get as many healers back to the group as possible,” Percy tried.

“You want me to fly Magnus all the way to the Plaza Hotel?”

Percy gave her a pleading look. “Please, Alex?”

Alex sighed. “Fine. But just so you know, I don’t like this idea.”

“Blackjack can take two more,” Percy said looking at Will. “Who else goes?”

“Alice and Lydia,” Will said after a second of consideration. “They can take Blackjack.”

Percy nodded. “Okay. The rest of us will get back as soon as we can.”

Will paused before climbing onto Blackjack. “Percy? Any word from Nico?”

“Not yet,” Percy said apologetically. “But he’s in the Underworld, so he might not be able to send any IMs.”

“Yeah, okay,” Will sighed. He climbed up onto Blackjack. Kayla and Austin lifted Michael up to drape across Blackjack’s back and Will’s lap.

Blackjack rose into the air followed by Porkpie and Alex-turned-pegasus. They disappeared into the sky.

Percy turned to look at Travis and Connor Stoll. “How do you guys feel about borrowing motorcycles?”

* * *

They had to look like the strangest motorcycle gang as they pulled up to the Plaza. About twenty kids in battle armor riding in pairs on various motorcycles with their swords, bows, and javelins jutting out.

They came to a stop at the fountain outside the hotel where a statue at the top of the fountain called down, “Oh, fine. I suppose you want me to watch your bikes too!”

“Could you please, Pompona?” Percy asked.

The statue of Pompona looked taken aback. “How did you-?”

“You’re the Roman goddess of plenty, right?” Percy said. “Thanks.”

Percy led the other demigods into the hotel.

“The campers are all in the penthouse suites,” a Hunter girl told them. “Elevators are over there.”

“Thanks,” Percy told her.

* * *

When they reached the penthouse suites, they were greeted by the sight of campers and Hunters alike crashed out on sofas, washing up in the bathrooms, ripping silk draperies to bandage their wounds, and helping themselves to snacks and sodas from the minibars. A couple of timber wolves were drinking out of the toilets. But everybody looked beat up.

“Good, you guys are here!” Will said, coming over. “Michael’s still out cold, but I could use help bandaging wounds.”

“On it,” Kayla said as she and the rest of her siblings hurried to the injured demigods.

Will stayed behind. “We need to send people out for some mortal supplies.” He handed Percy a hastily written list of supplies. "There's a Duane Reade on Fifth. Normally I would never steal—"

"I would," Travis volunteered.

Will glared at him. "Leave cash or drachmas to pay, whatever you've got, but this is an emergency. I've got a feeling we're going to have a lot more people to treat." He and Percy exchanged a look.

“Travis and Connor, you two take your cabin and get the supplies,” Percy said, handing them the list. “Leave money. Seriously.”

“Yeah, okay,” Travis said disappointedly. “Come on, guys. We’ve got a drugstore to raid… I mean, vist.”

The Hermes cabin went back towards the elevators.

“You do know they probably aren’t going to leave money, right?” Annabeth asked Percy and Will.

“I can always hope,” Will muttered.

Annabeth sighed. “I’m going to use my shield to keep an eye on things. If the army starts advancing, we need to be ready.” She went over to sit by a window and stared into her shield.

“Thanks,” Will said quietly. “Michael’s alive. So thanks.”

Percy looked over at Will. “How is he?”

Will shrugged. “He’ll pull through. Magnus got rid of the concussion at least, but I’d bet he has a headache when he wakes up. Probably this afternoon at the earliest.”

They stared in silence out the windows of the Plaza for a moment, watching as the sun came up over the city. The traffic should've been heavy by now, but there were no cars honking, no crowds bustling along the sidewalks.

Far away, Percy could hear a car alarm echo through the streets. A plume of black smoke curled into the sky somewhere over Harlem. Pretty soon there would be more fires. Everyone in New York was in danger—and all those lives depended on Percy and his friends.

Finally, Alex came by to tap Percy on the shoulder.

“What’s up, Alex?” Percy asked.

Alex held up a finger. “First up, I’m a guy now. Second, Grover’s here. He’s got… well, he’s got news.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Two Percy chapters, three one-shots, and I started a chat-fic to celebrate Percy's birthday. My apologies for not getting everything uploaded sooner. I meant to be uploading all day. Every hour or so, but I woke up late and then I was pretty busy throughout the day. Anyway, everything is going up now so I hope you enjoyed it!


	14. No, Michael's Not Dead so Please Stop Asking (Will)

PERCY CAST A GLANCE BACK AT Annabeth who seemed to sense her presence was needed because she came over to stand next to Percy.

“What kind of news?” Percy asked Alex.

He shrugged. “What kind of news is there? News about the Titans.”

Percy sighed. “Figured. Okay. Alex, can you gather the head counselors who  _ aren’t _ incapacitated? Will, can your siblings manage without you for a few minutes?”

“Yeah, I mean, it’s mostly just minor cuts,” Will mused. “And monitoring concussions as they heal. They should be fine.”

“Travis and Connor are still out getting supplies, but I can get everyone else,” Alex assured Percy. He went over to where Katie Gardner was sitting.

“Let’s go,” Percy said to Annabeth and Will. “We can meet the others there.”

When they got to the living room, Grover was there dressed for battle in an armored shirt made from tree bark and twist ties, with his wooden cudgel and his reed pipes hanging from his belt. He was currently eating various pieces of furniture despite the Demeter cabin having whipped up a whole buffet in the hotel kitchens.

"Dude," Percy said, "we're only borrowing this place."

"Blah-ha-ha!" Grover had stuffing all over his face. "Sorry, Percy. It's just… Louis the Sixteenth furniture. Delicious. Plus I always eat furniture when I get—"

"When you get nervous," Percy said. "Yeah, I know.”

Katie, Clarisse, Silena, Beckendorf, and Castor came over and sat in the pieces of furniture Grover hadn’t gotten to yet.

Beckendorf’s eyes landed on Will. “Wait. Michael isn’t…”

Will shook his head. “He’s unconscious. He’ll be fine by tonight.”

Silena slumped in relief. “Thank gods.” She flushed. “Not that I mean anything bad about you, Will, but I’m just glad Michael’s going to be okay.”

“Me too,” Will agreed.

Percy looked at Grover. “Alex said you had news.”

Grover took a deep breath. "I've mobilized most of the nature spirits in the city—well, the ones that will listen to me, anyway." He rubbed his forehead. "I had no idea acorns could hurt so much. Anyway, we're helping out as much as we can."

“Any help is good help,” Katie said. “With most of the bridges gone, the Titans have to travel through the tunnels.”

“All the bridges,” Will corrected. “Williamsburg is split. There’s a fifty foot gap.”

Clarisse raised an eyebrow. “How did you manage that?”

“I broke it,” Percy said. “My father  _ is _ the Earthshaker, and we were above a water source. Kronos was there though. Did he go to any of the tunnels?”

“Nothing got through the tunnels,” Beckendorf said. “They’re too closed in. At least it was like that for us.”

Clarisse nodded. “Same. The bridges are open, but the tunnels are closed in. The Titan’s will have a harder time getting through.”

“Grover? Anything else?” Annabeth asked.

He nodded. “It’s just been hellhounds so far that the nature spirits have seen since they can shadow travel, but they did see a young dragon in Harlem. They took care of it, but we lost a dozen wood nymphs.”

Thalia entered the room with two of her lieutenants. The three girls came over to listen to Grover’s report.

"We lost twenty satyrs against some giants at Fort Washington," Grover said, his voice trembling. "Almost half my kinsmen. River spirits drowned the giants in the end, but…"

Thalia shouldered her bow. "Percy, Kronos's forces are still gathering at every tunnel. And Kronos isn't the only Titan. One of my Hunters spotted a huge man in golden armor mustering an army on the Jersey shore. I'm not sure who he is, but he radiates power like only a Titan or god."

“Hyperion,” Annabeth said. “Definitely Hyperion.”

“Any good news?” Percy asked hopefully.

Thalia shrugged. "We've sealed off the subway tunnels into Manhattan. My best trappers took care of it. Also, it seems like the enemy is waiting for tonight to attack. I think Luke"—she caught herself—"I mean Kronos needs time to regenerate after each fight. He's still not comfortable with his new form. It's taking a lot of his power to slow time around the city."

Grover nodded. "Most of his forces are more powerful at night, too. But they'll be back after sundown."

“Most injuries are minor,” Will added. “As long as everyone rests, they’ll be good to go tonight.” He scowled. “If this wasn’t all hands on deck, anyone injured would be taking at least a whole day off.”

Thalia snorted. “When this is over, I’m sleeping for a whole day.” She looked at Percy. “Where’s Nico? Shouldn’t he be here? We could use his help.”

Will already knew the answer to that, but when Thalia asked, he couldn’t help but hope that Percy could give a different answer.

“Still in the Underworld,” Percy said. “If he can get Hades, Demeter, and Persephone here though, it will be worth the wait.”

“Having the help of even one god would improve our chances of winning,” Thalia agreed. “I know Lady Artemis would be here if she could. Athena, too. But Zeus has ordered them to stay at his side. The last I heard, Typhon was destroying the Ohio River valley. He should reach the Appalachian Mountains by midday."

"So at best," Percy said, "we've got another two days before he arrives. My birthday."

Katie cleared her throat. “I think we should consider something else. We might have another spy. I mean, the way Kronos  _ only _ showed up at Williamsburg Bridge? Like he knew Percy would be there.”

“ _ Another _ spy?” Thalia demanded.

Will saw Percy’s eyes flicker toward Silena. That surprised Will. He hadn’t known that Silena outed herself as the spy. Though, he wasn’t surprised that it had been kept secret from the other campers.

“We’ve taken care of the problem,” Percy said with an air of finality. “They aren’t spying anymore, and that’s all you need to know.”

“I don’t think he was there because of Percy,” Annabeth said. “The tunnels aren’t going to be easy for Kronos to take. The bridge was his easy way across. Percy just happened to be there.”

“It’s still something we should consider,” Katie said.

Silena stared at her hands folded in her lap. “She’s right. According to the spy,” she stuttered, “there was no other spy, but if that spy didn’t know about another spy…”

They all looked at Percy, waiting for a decision.

“We can’t obsess about this spy,” Percy said. “If we're suspicious of each other, we'll just tear ourselves apart. You guys were awesome last night. I couldn't ask for a braver army. Let's set up a rotation for the watches. Rest up while you can. We've got a long night ahead of us."

“As long as you’re including yourself in the rest up part,” Will said pointedly.

Percy let out a tired laugh. “Fair enough. Got it. I’ll rest.”

The demigods mumbled agreement. They went their separate ways to sleep or eat or repair their weapons.

* * *

“Where were you?” Kayla asked once Will returned to the area where they were taking care of the injured demigods.

Will frowned. “Sorry. I should have said something.”

“I mean, we were fine,” Kayla said, “but I was worried when you didn’t come back.”

“Percy wanted to talk to everyone,” Will explained. “Grover brought some news about the battle on the nature spirits’ front. Thalia came and shared some stuff too.” His eyes landed on Michael’s unconscious form. “Percy asked me to come,” he said quickly. “I… I didn’t mean to replace Michael or anything.”

Kayla offered him a small smile. “I know. I kind of figured Percy would ask you to step up until Michael wakes up.” She sighed. “Look, you should get some rest,” she told Will. “All the injuries have been handled, and we all should be resting while we can.”

Will stared at the inviting looking couches and beds. “Maybe a short nap.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Awww, Will.
> 
> Anyway, I'm almost done writing this. There's going to be at least 35 chapters _maybe_ 36\. And then you know that thing where you're laying in bed (supposed to be sleeping, but who needs sleep am I right?) and you start composing a whole novel? Yeah, so that's me right now with stuff that I'm thinking about for the Heroes of Olympus portion and the Sword of Summer portion of this series. Which is just great because I'm not even at a point where I can start that. Nor does me composing this when I'm supposed to be sleeping help because I don't exactly have the energy to get up, open my laptop, and write everything down.
> 
> Also, for those of you that asked, here is the link to the [one-shots](https://archiveofourown.org/series/1885465)  
> And here is the link to the [chat-fic](https://archiveofourown.org/works/25981969/chapters/63166339)


	15. Kronos's Scythe! (Nico)

AS FAR AS FATHERS WENT, Hades was much better than most of the other gods. Not by much though. And certainly not now.

Nico had spent pretty much all of his time at Camp Half-Blood, not really seeing any need to run away to the Underworld. He had Will, Percy and Annabeth, Will, Magnus and Alex, and Will. In general, he had a place at Camp despite Hades himself not really having a place at Camp.

The only problem with spending all his days at Camp Half-Blood and never once running away to the Underworld was that the first time he would be “meeting” Hades was right after he brought Percy to the River Styx for a swim on August 15, 2009 (if you didn’t count their brief interaction last winter). And the problem with  _ that _ was that Hades would not be pleased with his son for showing up and demanding he and his wife go to the aid of the demigods of Camp Half-Blood. Especially because Percy now bore the Achilles curse thanks to Nico.

So while Nico could have once boasted about having a decent relationship with his father, that was no longer the case.

Immediately after he had arrived in his father’s throne room, Persephone had turned Nico into a dandelion. Hades managed to get his wife to return Nico to his human state, but right after  _ that _ , Demeter and Hades got into a fight about cereal and illegal children. How cereal had anything to do with his father’s affairs, Nico had no idea.

It hardly mattered though, because Hades had banished Nico away to one of the various rooms in the palace after Nico asked him to help the demigods.

So here he was, laying on his back on the room’s bed, bored out of his mind and wishing he could just leave and go to Manhattan to help.

Nico didn’t even know what day it was on the surface world. It had been the morning of the 15th when he and Percy entered the Underworld, but for all Nico knew, the sun was rising on the 18th and the Battle was almost over.

He really hoped that wasn’t the case.

Iris messages didn’t work in the Underworld. Maybe because it was the Underworld. Maybe because it was just too dark down here. Maybe Iris just didn’t feel like helping in the middle of the Titan’s big battle.

Nico tilted his head. Did Iris support the Titans? He didn’t know. He knew some of her  _ kids _ supported the Titans, but Iris… well, from what Percy said about the rainbow goddess, she seemed like the neutral party in all of this. _ Like Sweden _ , Percy had said only for Annabeth to shake her head and say,  _ Switzerland, Seaweed Brain _ .

“Well, you tried,” Nico said aloud. “Dad doesn’t want to help. Persephone and Demeter don’t like you, as expected. It’s not like you need to show up with dad and his whole army to impress anyone this time.”

It would be nice though. Sure, his friends  _ knew _ he could convince Hades to come help eventually. And yeah, that would be pretty cool if everyone at Camp knew it too. But mostly, it would be nice to see the look of admiration on Will’s face when he turned up to save the day again.

Nico scowled. “And now you’ve lost it,” he muttered to himself. “That was way too sappy, di Angelo.”

He rolled over and let out a breath, feeling more and more like a stupid lovestruck teenager.

“Kronos’s scythe, you  _ are _ trying to impress someone,” Nico groaned. Sure he wanted to say lives, but he could do that even without bringing his father to the Battle. Hades showing up at Nico’s request was just impressive. Going above and beyond.

He sat up and moved towards the door.

Locked.

Didn’t matter. He had a plan. He just had to get to Persephone’s garden first.

* * *

By some luck or miracle, Hades hadn’t noticed that Nico was no longer in his room which allowed Nico the time he needed to dig a hole in one of Persephone’s flower beds. It was oddly satisfying to do.

Nico didn’t have McDonalds, so wine would have to do for now. He poured a goblet of win into the hole.

"Let the dead taste again,” he chanted. “Let them rise and take this offering. Maria di Angelo, show yourself!"

White smoke gathered. A human figure formed, but it wasn't Nico's mother. It was a girl with dark hair, olive skin, and the silvery clothes of a Hunter. Bianca.

“Bianca,” Nico started.

“Nico, what are you doing?” Bianca cried. “Don’t summon our mother. You  _ know _ she is the one spirit you are forbidden to see.”

“I know,” Nico said grimly. “But I need dad’s attention. I’m going to the Battle with or without him. I’d rather he help, but I need to make my case.”

Bianca gave him a sad look. “You know what you will find.”

“Yeah,” Nico agreed. “Now I just need dad to know I know.” He stood straighter. “Maria di Angelo. Speak to me!”

He was back in the lobby of an elegant hotel. Nico closed his eyes and let the memories of his last day in the 20th century wash over him.

* * *

The echo of the Oracle’s scream still rang in his ears as Nico was pulled out of the vision. Bianca hovered over him uncertainly, glancing between Nico and Hades worriedly.

Hades glared down at Nico. “And just what do you think you’re doing?”

“Father,” Nico said, willing his voice to remain steady. “I need to talk to you.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was kind of short. I have a few chapters like this where instead of the five ish pages I aim for, I only made them 2-4 pages and I made other chapters a little longer.
> 
> Anyway, hope you liked this!


	16. The Giver of Fire Gives Percy... A Pithos (Percy)

WHEN PERCY WOKE UP, he immediately dialled Rachel’s phone number.

“Percy?” Rachel’s confused voice asked. “I… I was just about to call Annabeth.”

“I know,” Percy said grimly. “I had a dream about you. Demigod dream that is. What did you figure out?”

Rachel was silent for a long time and Percy began to wonder if he had accidentally hung up when she finally spoke.

“The hero of the prophecy isn’t you,” she admitted. “I know that. I can’t explain it, but I know that. And I had to let you know before you went out to face Kronos.” Her tone indicated that there was a lot more Rachel wanted to say, but she was holding back for one reason or another.

“I know,” Percy said. “I know it’s not me.”

Rachel breathed a sigh or relief. “Thank God, Percy. I mean, thank  _ the _ gods. I’ve been so worried, and these things I can’t explain…” she trailed off. “Um, what’s going on in New York anyway?”

“Manhattan’s asleep,” Percy informed her. “Morpheus did it. We’re trying to hold Manhattan right now.” He winced. “Ah, the bridges have all, uh, collapsed.”

“Oh my god, Percy,” Rachel said incredulously. “Did you do that on purpose or accident?”

“Purpose,” Percy mumbled.

Rachel let out a long exasperated sigh. “Okay. But you guys are all okay?”

“Mostly,” Percy admitted. “I don’t know about Nico. He’s supposed to be trying to get his dad to fight with us. Look, Rachel. Stay out of New York. Please. I know you’re on vacation right now, so just relax and I’ll call you when this is over.”

“You know I can’t do that,” Rachel sighed. “I can’t just sit back and relax while you guys are off risking your lives. I’m going to be freaking out until you call me.” She laughed. “I don’t suppose you can send a pegasus to get me?”

“No,” Percy said. “Call me or Annabeth if you can think of anything else you might need to tell us. No matter how crazy or absurd it seems.”

“Percy!” Thalia called.

“I have to go, Rachel,” Percy said. “I’ll call you later. Promise.” He hung up the phone just as Thalia reached him.

“We have visitors,” Thalia said, mouth twisting. “A Titan wants to see you, under a flag of truce. He has a message from Kronos.”

Percy pursed his lips. “Fine. Let’s go see what this Titan wants.”

* * *

He had decided to bring along Annabeth, Thalia, and Grover. It was doubtful that Annabeth would have let Percy go without her since she wasn’t injured, so Percy skipped to the part where he just let her come with him.

They could see the white flag from half a mile away. It was as big as a soccer field, carried by a thirty-foot tall giant with bright blue skin and icy gray hair.

"A Hyperborean," Thalia said. "The giants of the north. It's a bad sign that they sided with Kronos. They're usually peaceful."

“Mmm,” Percy nodded slowly. “Okay. Great.”

As the giant got closer, Percy could see four human-size envoys with him: two half-bloods in armor, an empousa demon with a black dress and flaming hair, and a tall man in a tuxedo. The empousa held the tux dude's arm, so they looked like a couple on their way to a Broadway show or something—except for her flaming hair and fangs. The group walked leisurely toward the Heckscher Playground. The swings and ball courts were empty. The only sound was the fountain on Umpire Rock.

Grover shifted nervously. “He looks like a magician. I hate magicians. They usually have rabbits.”

Percy choked. “You what? Magicians?”

Annabeth elbowed Percy in the ribs. “Seaweed Brain. Focus.”

The man in the tux stepped forward. Percy was so not looking forward to dealing with Prometheus’s gift. Briefly, he wondered if he could just kill the group right now and be done with it. Although Ethan Nakamura, he was pretty sure one of those half-bloods was Ethan, didn’t really deserve death. And honestly, that would probably cause more problems trying to get Ethan to turn against the Titans than just leaving him be.

So Percy allowed the Titan Prometheus to do what he came here to do.

"Percy Jackson," Prometheus said in a silky voice. "It's a great honor." 

His lady friend the empousa hissed at Percy and Annabeth. Probably because of what happened to Tammi and Kelli last summer.

"My dear," Prometheus said to her. "Why don't you make yourself comfortable over there, eh?"

She released his arm and drifted over to a park bench.

Percy glanced at the armed demigods behind Prometheus. He was right. Ethan Nakamura was one of them. The other was Allegra, the demigod that had been with Ethan in the Labyrinth the previous summer.

“Hey, Ethan,” Percy said. “Allegra. You two are looking good.”

Ethan glared at Percy, but Allegra looked away.

Prometheus cleared his throat. “To business. I am Prometheus.”

“The dude who stole fire,” Percy nodded. “Shouldn’t you be chained to a rock with vultures eating your liver?”

Prometheus scowled. “Please don’t mention the vultures. But yes, I stole fire from the gods and gave it to your ancestors. In return, the ever merciful Zeus had me chained to a rock and tortured for all eternity. Thankfully, Hercules freed me eons ago. I have a soft spot for heroes. Some of you can be quite civilized." He said this all very pointedly and Percy got the feeling asking about vultures was a strike against being counted as civilized.

“Well, I’m not civilized,” Percy declared. “So what did you want?”

Prometheus raised an eyebrow, but waved toward a picnic table. He and Percy sat across from each other. Annabeth took the spot next to Percy without hesitation while Thalia and Grover stood behind them.

The blue giant propped his white flag against a tree and began absently playing on the playground. He stepped on the monkey bars and crushed them, but he didn't seem angry. He just frowned and said, "Uh oh." Then he stepped in the fountain and broke the concrete bowl in half. "Uh-oh." The water froze where his foot touched it. A bunch of stuffed animals hung from his belt—the huge kind you get for grand prizes at an arcade. He reminded Percy of Tyson.

Prometheus sat forward and laced his fingers. He looked earnest, kindly, and wise. "Percy, your position is weak. You know you can't stop another assault."

“I think I can,” Percy said flatly. “We’ve stopped you so far with minimal injuries. I’d say my position is actually very strong.”

Next to him, Annabeth smirked.

Prometheus looked pained, like he really cared what happened to the demigods. "Percy, I'm the Titan of forethought. I know what's going to happen."

"Also the Titan of crafty counsel," Grover put in. "Emphasis on crafty."

Prometheus shrugged. "True enough, satyr. But I supported the gods in the last war. I told Kronos: 'You don't have the strength. You'll lose.' And I was right. So you see, I know how to pick the winning side. This time, I'm backing Kronos. You may think you have a chance, but I  _ know _ you do not."

“You don’t know me or any of my friends,” Percy snapped. “We won’t give up that easily.”

“Maybe not,” Prometheus nodded. “But I’m here because I thought you might listen to reason.” He drew a map on the table with his finger. Wherever he touched, golden lines appeared, glowing on the concrete. "This is Manhattan. We have armies here, here, here, and here. We know your numbers. We outnumber you and our forces are growing daily." Prometheus smiled apologetically. "Tonight, Kronos will attack. You will be overwhelmed. You've fought bravely, but there's just no way you can hold all of Manhattan. You'll be forced to retreat to the Empire State Building. There you'll be destroyed. I have seen this. It will happen."

“Not happening,” Percy said. “Ever heard the saying the future isn’t set in stone?”

Prometheus brushed a speck off his tux lapel. "Understand, Percy. You are refighting the Trojan War here. Patterns repeat themselves in history. They reappear just as monsters do. A great siege. Two armies. The only difference is, this time you are defending. You are Troy. And you know what happened to the Trojans, don't you?"

“Aeneas escaped and built the Roman Empire,” Percy suggested.

Prometheus stiffened and rolled his head like he had bad neck pains or something.

Percy stifled a grin. So even the Titans were able to be affected by the Greek and Roman split personalities. Good to know.

Prometheus cleared his throat. "Troy was completely destroyed, Percy. You don't want that to happen here. Stand down, and New York will be spared. Your forces will be granted amnesty. I will personally assure your safety. Let Kronos take Olympus. Who cares? Typhon will destroy the gods anyway."

“You want us to surrender, but my answer is no,” Percy said, crossing his arms. “That’s my final answer. Are we done here?”

“Typhon reaches New York in two days,” Prometheus said. “In two days, the gods will be defeated and the Titan’s will rule. You can choose how many people have to die before then. When Kronos destroys Olympus, the gods will fade. They will become so weak they will be easily defeated. Kronos would rather do this while Typhon has the Olympians distracted in the west. Much easier. Fewer lives lost. But make no mistake, the best you can do is slow us down. When Typhon arrives, Mount Olympus will still be destroyed, but it will be much messier.”

Thalia pounded her fist on the table. "I serve Artemis. The Hunters will fight to our last breath. Percy said his answer is no. I’ll stand behind him.”

Percy felt rather touched by Thalia’s words.

Prometheus just smiled. "Your courage does you credit, Thalia Grace." 

Thalia stiffened. "That's my mother's surname. I don't use it."

"As you wish," Prometheus said casually. "At any rate," the Titan said, "you need not be my enemy. I have always been a helper of mankind."

"That's a load of Minotaur dung," Thalia said. "When mankind first sacrificed to the gods, you tricked them into giving you the best portion. You gave us fire to annoy the gods, not because you cared about us."

Prometheus shook his head. "You don't understand. I helped shape your nature."

A wiggling lump of clay appeared in his hands. He fashioned it into a little doll with legs and arms. The lump man didn't have any eyes, but it groped around the table, stumbling over Prometheus's fingers.

"I have been whispering in man's ear since the beginning of your existence. I represent your curiosity, your sense of exploration, your inventiveness. Help me save you, Percy. Do this, and I will give mankind a new gift—a new revelation that will move you as far forward as fire did. You can't make that kind of advance under the gods. They would never allow it. But this could be a new golden age for you. Or..." He made a fist and smashed the clay man into a pancake.

The blue giant rumbled, "Uh-oh." Over at the park bench, the empousa bared her fangs in a smile.

"Percy, you know the Titans and their offspring are not all bad," Prometheus said. "You've met Calypso."

“Calypso sided with the Titans the first time,” Percy said. “She was punished for that. Sure, she changed and doesn’t deserve to still be imprisoned, but I won’t argue that it wasn’t justified in the beginning.”

“Do you truly believe that?” Prometheus asked.

Even as Percy had spoken, the words left a bitter taste in his mouth. Because, no. He knew Calypso, and she was his friend. And she didn’t deserve it.

Prometheus nodded. “You see? She did nothing wrong, yet she was exiled forever simply because she was Atlas’s daughter. We are not your enemies. Don’t let the worst happen,” he pleaded. “We offer you peace.”

“I said no,” Percy said. “We won’t surrender. But you can tell Kronos that he can call off his attack, leave Luke’s body, and return to the pits of Tartarus.”

The empousa snarled. Her hair erupted in fresh flames, but Prometheus just sighed.

"If you change your mind," he said, "I have a gift for you."

A Greek vase appeared on the table. It was about three feet high and a foot wide, glazed with black-and-white geometric designs. The ceramic lid was fastened with a leather harness.

Grover whimpered when he saw it.

“Pandora’s Pithos,” Annabeth said sourly.

Prometheus looked pleased. “Yes. This belonged to my sister-in-law. She opened this jar, which contained most of the demons that now haunt mankind—fear, death, hunger, sickness."

"Don't forget me," the empousa purred. 

"Indeed," Prometheus conceded. "The first empousa was also trapped in this jar, released by Pandora. But what I find curious about the story—Pandora always gets the blame. She is punished for being curious. The gods would have you believe that this is the lesson: mankind should not explore. They should not ask questions. They should do what they are told. In truth, Percy, this jar was a trap designed by Zeus and the other gods. It was revenge on me and my entire family—my poor simple brother Epimetheus and his wife Pandora. The gods knew she would open the jar. They were willing to punish the entire race of humanity along with us." Prometheus tapped the lid of Pandora's jar. "Only one spirit remained inside when Pandora opened it."

"Hope," Percy said.

Prometheus looked pleased. "Very good, Percy. Elpis, the Spirit of Hope, would not abandon humanity. Hope does not leave without being given permission. She can only be released by a child of man." The Titan slid the jar across the table. "I give you this as a reminder of what the gods are like," he said. "Keep Elpis, if you wish. But if you decide that you have seen enough destruction, enough futile suffering, then open the jar. Let Elpis go. Give up Hope, and I will know that you are surrendering. I promise Kronos will be lenient. He will spare the survivors."

Percy stared at the jar. “I’ll take the stupid jar, but I’m not surrendering. Ever.” He stood up and fixed Ethan and Allegra with a look. “It’s not too late to change sides. The gods aren’t perfect, but neither are the Titans.”

Ethan glared. “We’ll see, Jackson.”

Prometheus stood. The empousa came forward and slipped her arm through his.

"Morrain!" Prometheus called to the blue giant. "We are leaving. Get your flag."

"Uh-oh," the giant said.

"We will see you soon, Percy Jackson," Prometheus promised. "One way or another." 

Ethan gave Percy one last hateful look. Then he turned around, pulling Allegra after him. The truce party strolled up the lane through Central Park, like it was just a regular sunny Sunday afternoon.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So... I have finished writing for this story. There will be 37 chapters in this story. Technically 36 and then the last one is an epilogue. I've started writing the next story. I don't know if I want to put The Lost Hero and the Son of Neptune as one story because I don't plan on including all the stuff from the books otherwise I'd just be posting word for word Jason, Piper, and Leo's quest as well as Percy, Frank, and Hazel's quest. Jason, Piper, and Leo aren't involved in the whole time travel thing, so nothing would really change for them and then Percy won't have his memories, so nothing can change for that quest either. I don't know. The story is going to start in September right after the Titan war, that much I know for sure.


	17. Percy in the Eye of the Storm (Percy)

AFTER MEETING WITH PROMETHEUS, Percy stared at Pandora’s Pithos. He knew what to do with this so that it wouldn’t be able to tempt him, but just looking at it was so very tempting.

“Okay,” Percy said, tearing his eyes from the Pithos. “We need to get this away from here.”

“The Hotel safe,” Thalia suggested.

Annabeth shook her head. “No. That’s not going to work. The Pithos will always appear to Percy no matter where we put it. It’s going to try and tempt you to open it.” She held out her hands for Percy to pass her the Pithos. “Let me hold it, Percy. Just in case.”

“I’m not opening it,” Percy grumbled, but he passed it to her anyway. She was right. Better to be safe than sorry. “Let’s just get back to the Hotel and then we can decide what to do with it.”

* * *

Back at the Plaza, Thalia pulled Percy aside. “Hey, Percy?”

Percy gestured for Annabeth and Grover to keep going. He turned back to Thalia. “What’s wrong?”

Thalia glanced over to watch as Annabeth and Grover made their way inside the Hotel. “I’m worried about Annabeth. And you if I’m being honest. If either of you have to face Luke in battle… can you really kill him? I mean, I know you could have done it, but recently… you’ve changed, Percy. After I was brought back, you  _ hated _ Luke. Now, it’s like you want to save him.”

“If Luke can be saved, shouldn’t we try?” Percy pointed out. “I  _ don’t _ want to kill Luke, Thalia, but if it comes down to it, then I will. Okay? As for Annabeth,” he looked towards the doors Annabeth had disappeared into, “she knows what has to be done.”

Thalia let out a breath. “Okay. I’ll trust you, Percy. But since we’re alone, does anyone else know about Magnus and Alex’s not-so-Greek background?”

“Just me, Annabeth, Grover, Nico, Will, and you.”

“Will? Will Solace?”

Percy shrugged. “Yeah. He and Nico are friends and Magnus helps in the infirmary.”

Thalia gave him a weird look. “You owe me an explanation about all this.”

“If we make it through this alive, then I’ll tell you everything,” Percy promised.

“You better.” Thalia patted Percy’s shoulder. “I’m going to check on the Hunters, then get some more sleep before nightfall. You should crash too.”

Percy grimaced. "The last thing I need is more dreams."

"I know, believe me." Thalia wore a dark expression. "But Percy, there's no telling when you'll get another chance for rest. It's going to be a long night—maybe our last night. I know you put up a big bravado for Prometheus, but he’s right. We barely managed to hold their forces back. We funneled their locations, but that also meant more monsters in each location we left open."

Percy glanced down the silent streets. “I hope Nico gets here soon.”

* * *

“What is that?” Alex asked flatly. He was pointing to Pandora’s Pithos.

Percy sighed. “A Pithos. Pandora’s Pithos.”

“Well, Pandora needs to go back to pottery school,” Alex grumbled.

“Wait,” Magnus said, staring at the Pithos. “Pandora’s Pithos? As in Pandora? As in the girl who unleashed all the evil in the world?”

“Why is it always a girl?” Alex wondered. “Christians have Eve. Apparently you Greeks have Pandora.”

“Why do you have Pandora’s Box?” Magnus asked.

“It’s a pithos,” Annabeth corrected. “Prometheus gave it to Percy. I’m holding it so he doesn’t get tempted to open it.”

“Because Hope is still inside,” Magnus recalled. “You can’t let go of Hope.”

“What are you going to do with it?” Alex asked Percy.

“I’m not opening it,” Percy said firmly. “And I have a plan. But first, get some rest. Kronos is attacking tonight and we need to be ready.” He found the nearest bed and passed out.

Of course, that meant nightmares.

* * *

When Percy woke up, Annabeth was looking down at him.

“What did you see?” she asked immediately.

Percy was silent for a moment. Then, “A lot,” he said. “My dad. Tyson. The underwater fight isn’t going well, but we knew that. Kronos talked to Ethan. That girl Allegra was there too. Annabeth, what do we know about Allegra? Who is she?”

Annabeth shook her head and shrugged. “I don’t know, Percy. I’ve never even heard of her. She was never at Camp like Ethan was. They clearly know each other. Maybe they’re together? I don’t know.”

“The Labyrinth stuff happened a week earlier than it was supposed to,” Percy said. “Maybe we only met Allegra because of that. Maybe… maybe she wasn’t supposed to live.”

Annabeth thought about that for a minute. “You might be right, but she’s alive now. Whatever her part is in all this, I don’t think she truly believes in Kronos. I think she’s only there because of Ethan.”

“Do you think if we can get her to switch sides, Ethan will too?” Percy asked.

“Maybe, but that’s a big if to rely on,” Annabeth said.

Percy sat up. “Kronos knows about Jack, but he doesn’t know about the Norse. I guess that’s after his time.”

“Norse Mythology didn’t start until way after the Romans,” Annabeth nodded. “And the Greeks were before the Romans, so there’s no way for Kronos or Saturn to know about them. Anything else?”

“Luke’s fighting back,” Percy said quietly. “I want to save him, but…”

“Yeah,” Annabeth said wistfully. “Go on.”

“Hyperion’s leading the main force into Central Park,” Percy said. “They have that surprise waiting for us.” He rubbed his eyes. “Gods, Annabeth. This is harder than I thought.”

“You’re doing great, Percy,” Annabeth said. “We knew this was going to be difficult. Let’s just focus on getting through this day.” She offered Percy her hand and helped him up. “Let’s go rally the troops.”

* * *

Thalia and the head counselors were waiting at the Reservoir. The lights of the city were blinking on at twilight. Street lamps glowed around the shore of the lake, making the water and trees look even spookier.

"They're coming," Thalia confirmed, pointing north with a silver arrow. "One of my scouts just reported they've crossed the Harlem River. There was no way to hold them back. The army… " She shrugged. "It's huge."

"We'll hold them at the park," Percy said. "Grover, you ready?"

Grover nodded. "As ready as we'll ever be. If my nature spirits can stop them anywhere, this is the place."

"Yes, we will!" said another voice. A very old, fat satyr pushed through the crowd, stumbling over his own spear. He was dressed in wood-bark armor that only covered half of his belly.

"Leneus?" Percy said.

"Don't act so surprised," he huffed. "I am a leader of the Council, and you did tell me to find Grover. Well, I found him, and I'm not going to let a mere outcast lead the satyrs without my help!" Behind Leneus's back, Grover made gagging motions, but the old satyr grinned like he was the savior of the day. "Never fear! We'll show those Titans!"

“Okay,” Percy nodded. “Grover, Leneus, and the nature spirits will be here with Athena cabin, the Hunters, and I.” He glanced at the other counselors. “That leaves the rest of you with a job just as important. You have to guard the other entrances to Manhattan. You know how tricky Kronos is. He'll hope to distract us with this big army and sneak another force in somewhere else. It's up to you to make sure that doesn't happen. Katie, go back to Brooklyn-Battery. Clarisse, take Queens-Midtown. Silena, go to Lincoln Tunnel this time. Beckendorf, you’re back at Holland Tunnel.” He looked at Will. “Apollo cabin should start setting up a makeshift hospital by the Empire State Building. How’s Michael?”

“Awake,” Will said. “He’s with Kayla. Making sure he can shoot.”

“Good,” Percy said in relief. “Castor and Pollux, go with Katie. That leaves Travis and Connor. You guys divide up and go with Clarisse and Silena. Everyone got it?”

The counselors nodded grimly.

"Then let's do it," Percy said. "Good hunting, everybody!"

* * *

They heard the army before they saw it. The noise was like a cannon barrage combined with a football stadium crowd. At the north end of the reservoir, the enemy vanguard broke through the woods—a warrior in golden armor leading a battalion of Laistrygonian giants with huge bronze axes. Hundreds of other monsters poured out behind them.

"Positions!" Annabeth yelled.

Her cabinmates scrambled. The idea was to make the enemy army break around the reservoir. To get to the demigods, they'd have to follow the trails, which meant they'd be marching in narrow columns on either side of the water.

The plan worked at first as Percy and Annabeth knew. The enemy divided and streamed towards them along the shoor. When they were halfway across, the defenses kicked in.

The jogging trail erupted in Greek fire, incinerating many of the monsters instantly. Others flailed around, engulfed in green flames. Athena campers threw grappling hooks around the largest giants and pulled them to the ground.

In the woods on the right, the Hunters sent a volley of silver arrows into the enemy line, destroying twenty or thirty dracaenae, but more marched behind them. A bolt of lightning crackled out of the sky and fried a Laistrygonian giant to ashes, courtesy of Thalia.

Grover raised his pipes and played a quick tune. A roar went up from the woods on both sides as every tree, rock, and bush seemed to sprout a spirit. Dryads and satyrs raised their clubs and charged. The trees wrapped around the monsters, strangling them. Grass grew around the feet of the enemy archers. Stones flew up and hit dracaenae in the faces.

The enemy slogged forward. Giants smashed through the trees, and naiads faded as their life sources were destroyed. Hellhounds lunged at the timber wolves, knocking them aside. Enemy archers returned fire, and a Hunter fell from a high branch.

“Percy!” Annabeth yelled, grabbing his arm. “Hyperion!”

Percy looked across the reservoir to see the gold Titan charging over the top of the lake.

“I’ll take care of this,” Percy said, drawing his sword.

Annabeth’s gaze hardened as she looked at the Titan. “Okay. Just don’t overexert yourself.”

Percy sent her a grin. “Who are we? Will and Nico?” Without waiting for an answer, he advanced toward Hyperion, running over the top of the water.

Twenty feet away, Hyperion raised his sword. His eyes were gold—as gold as Kronos's but brighter, like miniature suns.

"The sea god's brat," he mused. "You're the one who trapped Atlas beneath the sky again?"

"It wasn't hard," Percy said. "You Titans are about as bright as my gym socks."

Hyperion snarled. "You want bright?"

Percy grinned. Just what he was waiting for.

As Hyperion turned up his power, igniting his body in a column of light and heat, Percy closed his eyes and felt a familiar tug in his gut.

A wave of water rose up and splashed over Hyperion, dousing the blinding light from the Titan.

“AHHHHH!” the Titan yelled.

Hyperion struggled to his feet. His golden armor was dripping wet. His golden eyes no longer blazed, but they still looked murderous.

"You will burn, Jackson!" he roared.

“Not today!” Percy yelled.

The battle still raged around them. On the right flank, Annabeth was leading an assault with her siblings. On the left flank, Grover and his nature spirits were regrouping, entangling the enemies with bushes and weeds.

"Enough games," Hyperion told Percy. "We fight on land."

The Titan yelled and a wall of force slammed Percy through the air—just like the trick Kronos had pulled on the bridge. Percy sailed backward about three hundred yards and smashed into the ground. If it hadn't been for his invulnerability, he would've broken every bone in his body.

Maybe he should thank Nico for talking him back into this.

Percy got to his feet, groaning. “I really hate it when you Titans do that.”

Hyperion closed on Percy with blinding speed.

Percy concentrated on the water, drawing strength from it.  _ Okay _ , he thought.  _ Hurricane time _ .

Hyperion attacked. Their swords clanged and clashed. Hyperion was powerful and fast, but he couldn't seem to land a blow. The ground around his feet kept erupting in flames, but Percy kept dousing it just as quickly.

All around them, the wind was picking up. The sky was darkening and clouds swirled around. If Percy wasn’t actively trying to make the hurricane, he wouldn’t have noticed the rain coming down hard.

"Stop it!" Hyperion roared. "Stop that wind!"

Hyperion stumbled like he was being pushed away. Water sprayed his face, stinging his eyes. The wind picked up, and Hyperion staggered backward.

"Percy!" Grover called in amazement. "How are you doing that?"

Honestly, Percy didn’t know. There had only been two fights where Percy had made a hurricane. Fighting Hyperion and fighting Alcyoneus. It wasn’t like he tried to practice making hurricanes in his spare time.

It would be cool though. Maybe he would practice when this was all over.

Clouds of water vapor swirled around Percy, winds so powerful they buffeted Hyperion and flattened the grass in a twenty-yard radius. Enemy warriors threw javelins at him, but the storm knocked them aside. Lightning flickered around Percy. The clouds darkened and the rain swirled faster. He closed in on Hyperion and blew him off his feet.

"Percy!" Grover called again. "Bring him over here!"

Percy slashed and jabbed, letting his reflexes take over. He was fighting this battle on autopilot now, and Hyperion could barely defend himself. His eyes kept trying to ignite, but the hurricane quenched his flames. Percy propelled Hyperion across the field, straight to where Grover was waiting.

"I will not be toyed with!" Hyperion bellowed.

He managed to get to his feet again, but Grover put his reed pipes to his lips and began to play. Leneus joined him. Around the grove, every satyr took up the song. The ground erupted at Hyperion's feet. Gnarled roots wrapped around his legs.

"What's this?" he protested. The roots thickened until he looked like he was wearing wooden boots. "Stop this!" he shouted. "Your woodland magic is no match for a Titan!"

Hyperion struggled against the roots, but it was no use. They curled around his body, thickening and hardening into bark as the music continued. Hyperion's forces backed up in astonishment as their leader was absorbed. The tree grew taller and thicker, until only the Titan's face was visible in the middle of the trunk.

"You cannot imprison me!" he bellowed. "I am Hyperion! I am—"

The bark closed over his face.

Grover took his pipes from his mouth. "You are a very nice maple tree."

Several of the other satyrs passed out from exhaustion, but they'd done their job well. The Titan lord was completely encased in an enormous maple.

Percy made a mental note to come back and check on this tree in June. Maybe he could set up a rotation and have Annabeth and Nico check it every month too.

The Titan's army started to retreat. A cheer went up from the Athena cabin, but the victory was short-lived. Because just then Kronos unleashed his surprise.

"REEEEET!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I finally read 9 From the Nine Worlds and I loved it! My favorite story was probably the Midgard one with Amir. Underrated character for sure. I need more Amir content. Honestly, I think we need some short stories with the mortals. I'd love to see Sally and Paul fight off monsters and then have Percy come home like "what did I miss?" Or Sadie's friends encountering more monsters and gods. And of course Amir too. Oooh, or we have Rachel at her dad's fancy yacht club or wherever they might be and Rachel sees a monster and has to figure out how she a mortal can take care of the issue without anyone noticing or the monster hurting anyone.
> 
> Actually, does anyone know if there's any stories about this? Because I would be interested in reading those.
> 
> On that note with Sadie, I would very much like a short story with her and Drew and Lacy finding out they are all involved in the mythological world.


	18. Ethan and Allegra Have a Not-So-Dark Secret (Annabeth)

ANNABETH HAD A SINKING FEELING as soon as she heard the sow’s “REEEEET!”

“Why does that sound like… It can’t be!” Grover said, looking panicked. He was probably thinking about the gift from Pan, which was pretty reasonable, except for Annabeth.

“Di immortales,” Annabeth said under her breath.

"REEEEEET!" A huge pink creature soared over the reservoir.

“The Clazmonian Sow!” Annabeth cried. “Take cover!”

Demigods scattered as the winged sow swooped down, barely missing one of the demigods Annabeth barely had time to register as Sophia. The pig stomped around and tore down half an acre of trees, belching a cloud of noxious gas. Then it took off again, circling around for another strike.

“I have a plan!” Percy shouted.

Annabeth glared at him. “I swear to all the gods, Percy, if you get yourself killed-”

“Love you too, Wise Girl!” Percy said, grabbing a grappling hook from Malcolm. “Retreat if you need to,” he ordered them. “Just slow them down. I’ll be back in a minute.”

The Titan’s army was recovering from the shock of the sow’s appearance, but the demigods’ forces were still in a panic. Every time the sow belched, Grover’s nature spirits yelped and faded back into their trees. The Hunters were on the opposite side of the enemy’s right flank.

Percy swung the grappling hook like a lasso. When the sow came down for its next pass, he threw the hook which wrapped around the base of the pig's wing. It squealed in rage and veered off, yanking the rope and Percy into the sky.

Annabeth took a deep breath and dove into the fighting. Her first opponent was taken down easily; he was still staring up at the pig in surprise. She knocked him out with the butt of her knife and moved on to her next opponent.

Despite the girl wielding a sword and Annabeth only having her knife, Annabeth nearly knocked the sword out of the girl’s hand after the first few swings.

“Allegra?” Annabeth asked, finally seeing the girl’s face when her helmet was knocked off.

Allegra gave Annabeth a startled look. Her eyes were wide and she swung her sword desperately at Annabeth’s face.

Annabeth blocked the strike with ease. “Why are you helping the Titans? Is it because of Ethan?”

Allegra faltered. “You don’t know anything,” she stuttered. She held her sword in front of her like she was trying to cut Annabeth in half the vertical way.

“What I  _ do _ know is that you don’t want to do this,” Annabeth said. She held a steady gaze on Allegra. “It’s pretty obvious to me. You’ve always seemed uncomfortable with supporting Kronos, even back in the Labyrinth when we first met. Why are you letting Ethan talk you into this?”

“I don’t have a choice,” Allegra said defensively. “I have to do this.”

“Why?”

“Because he’s my cousin!” Allegra shouted. “He’s all I have left! I won’t fight against my own family.”

Suddenly, everything clicked into place.

Ethan and Allegra. Cousins. Their parents, Ethan’s dad and Allegra’s mortal parent, died or left them alone with no one but each other. Luke must have found them some time after that and recruited them. Ethan was bitter and angry with the gods. Allegra had lost everyone except Ethan. Wherever he went, she was going to follow.

“You don’t have to fight Ethan,” Annabeth said, blocking another one of Allegra’s almost half-hearted swings. “And he’s not your only family. You could have everyone at Camp Half-Blood as your family, Allegra.”

“That’s not what Ethan says,” Allegra shouted. “You don’t even have a place for my mom. He says I’ll be crammed in the Hermes cabin like he was.”

“Who is your mom, Allegra?” Annabeth asked.

Allegra bit her lip.

“Annabeth!” Malcolm shouted. “We have to fall back!”

Annabeth looked around her and cursed. The nature spirits were gone, leaving just the Hunters and Athena cabin. She looked back towards Allegra, but the girl had disappeared back into the Titan army’s lines.

“Retreat!” Annabeth yelled above the fighting. “Retreat, but fight when you can!”

Annabeth grabbed a bow and quiver full of arrows from a fallen Hunter with a hastily murmured apology. She nocked an arrow and let it fly into the Titan’s forces, instantly turning a dracaenae to dust. She was no Artemis or Apollo, but she could certainly aim a bow decently enough.

“What is going on?” someone shouted.

Annabeth glanced towards the voice. “Nico!” she cried.

Nico took out his sword and slashed a monster into dust. He moved so fast, Annabeth didn’t even get a chance to see what it was.

“Is your dad coming?” Annabeth asked.

Nico scowled. “I don’t know. I gave it my best shot, but he’s stubborn. And I realized that I’d rather be helping fight than just sitting in the Underworld. Where’s Percy?”

“Fighting a pig,” Annabeth answered honestly. What did it say about their lives that the answer she just gave Nico could be considered a serious answer? “So Hades isn’t coming?”

“If he comes today, I’ll wear the Camp t-shirt for a day,” Nico declared. He raised his sword and pointed it at the enemy. “Serve me.”

Dozens of skeletons clawed their way out of the ground and found themselves among the monsters and demigods of the Titan army.

Nico pulled Annabeth’s arm. “Let’s go!”

As they retreated, more campers came to their aid to give the group a break from the retreating and fighting and retreating and fighting. It was a reprieve at least. They still had to run.

“Hunters!” Thalia called. “Set up a defensive line along 37th Street. No one gets past us. Like Percy said, retreat if you have to.”

Percy. That reminded Annabeth. Where  _ was _ Percy? He couldn’t still be fighting that stupid pig, could he?

“Extend between Sixth Avenue and Park Avenue,” Nico told Thalia. “There’s a group along those two roads.”

Thalia raised an eyebrow. “Where did you come from?”

“Just got here,” Nico sighed. “My dad’s not coming yet. I shouted at him and laid out all the reasons for him to come. Then I said I was going with or without him and I left. So… we’ll see if he shows up.”

“Yelling at a god,” Thalia snorted. “Percy’s rubbing off on you.” She relayed the suggestion from Nico to her Hunters who nodded and took off. Thalia with them.

As soon as the Hunters were gone, Annabeth cursed.

“Park Avenue Tunnel!” she shouted.

Nico frowned. “What about it?”

“I forgot Thalia set up the defensive line on 37th,” Annabeth said. “The Titans can use the Tunnel to bypass the Hunters.” She waved her siblings over. “Park Avenue and 33rd Street now!” She turned to head that way, but Nico pulled her back.

“Where’s Will?” he asked.

“He’s at the Empire State Building with the injured,” Annabeth said. “He’s fine, Nico. You need to make sure the monsters don’t get past anyone. Go to the southwest and west boundaries. We left three passages open in those directions. I bet those are getting hit hard right now. Go!”

Nico cast a glance towards the Empire State Building. He looked back at Annabeth and nodded. The son of Hades took off down the street and disappeared into a shadow.

“Let’s go!” Annabeth called to her cabin. “We have to make sure they aren’t using the tunnel.”

When they got to the intersection, Alex and Magnus were already there, battling a Hyperborean giant. Or at least, Annabeth assumed it was Alex.

He, she… Annabeth didn’t know what Alex was right now. The last time she’d seen the shapeshifter, Alex had said he. Had that really only been this morning? It seemed like longer.

In any case, there was a giant bird flying a screaming Magnus into the air. The bird, who had to be Alex, dropped Magnus onto the giant’s back. Magnus shouted at Alex as he drove Jack into the giant’s back. The Hyperborean Giant turned to solid ice which shattered into blue shards as something dark swooped down from the sky.

Annabeth rushed to the icy remains to see a displeased Magnus seated behind Percy on Blackjack.

“What was that about?” Magnus asked Alex.

Alex shrugged. “Trying to kill the giant ice dude?”

Jack hummed as he observed, or as close to observing as a sword could get, the ice pile. He started glowing slightly. “I'm only gonna break, break your, break, break your heart,” the sword sang. “I'm only gonna break, break your, break, break your heart. I'm only gonna break, break your, break, break your heart. I'm only gonna break, break your, break, break your heart. Whoa, oh. Whoa, oh.”

“Jack, shut up,” Magnus sighed.

“Right. Enemies to kill,” Jack agreed.

Annabeth looked at Percy. “The pig?”

“Pork chops,” he said.

“Good.” Annabeth turned to Alex and Magnus. “How’d you know to come here?”

“Ran into Nico,” Alex explained. “Told us you were going here. Magnus took off, so I had to follow him and make sure he doesn’t die.”

“Nico’s here?” Percy asked, glancing around. “Where?”

“Probably somewhere alone Sixth Avenue now,” Annabeth said.

“Sixth and 34th,” Magnus said. “At least, that’s where we were when we found him.”

“Hades?” Percy asked.

Annabeth shook her head. “Not today.”

“Oi! There’s a war going on!” Sophia shouted.

Alex grinned and pulled out the deadly garrote that Annabeth really needed to learn the story behind one day. “She’s right. Plenty of enemies left!”

The next hour was a mindless blur. Annabeth and Percy fought side-by-side—wading into legions of dracaenae, taking out dozens of telkhines with every strike, destroying empousai and knocking out enemy demigods.

Every so often, the screech of an animal alerted Annabeth to Alex’s presence and a catchy pop tune reminded her that Magnus and Jack were there too. She thanked the gods each time she heard them because if they were making noise, that meant they were still fighting.

“We need to back up!” Alex shouted. “They need more people in the south!”

Annabeth tore off down the streets with Percy at her heels. As they ran, they cut down monster after monster, but it didn’t do any good. Even more monsters rose up to take their place. She passed way too many of her fellow demigods wounded or dead in the streets.

Some part of Annabeth’s brain thought about how much more horrific it would be right now if the Doors of Death were open and Thanatos was captured. Monsters being cut down, then reforming and  _ joining _ the ones that would have taken their place. It would be a nightmare and a slaughter.

Gods, how could she have roped Magnus and Alex into this? They had enough problems without having to worry about her and Percy’s. Now they were risking their lives to fight in a battle that wasn’t even theirs to begin with. Annabeth would never forgive herself if either of them died here and now without a Valkyrie to take them to Valhalla. After all, why would anyone involved in the Greek’s Second Titanomachy need a Valkyrie? They were going to a Greek afterlife.

But Magnus and Alex were Norse. If they died without a Valkyrie… it was Helheim for them. And that would be on her.

As the night wore on and the moon got higher, they were backed up foot by foot until they were only a block from the Empire State Building in any direction. Annabeth stayed with Percy, or Percy stayed with her, she wasn’t sure which way it was. They worked as a team. Annabeth sneaking behind enemy lines with her invisibility hat and surprising them by dusting a few of them before Percy charged in to help her finish them off.

"Hold your lines!" Katie shouted, somewhere off to the left.

There was a slight problem with that. The entrance to Olympus was only twenty feet behind the demigods and only a small number of them left. The demigods, Hunters, and nature spirits guarding the doors were injured and barely in fighting condition, and there weren't enough uninjured fighters protecting them from the onslaught of monsters and enemy demigods.

Annabeth could see Percy fighting wildly, his Achilles Curse protecting him from arrows and swords which he regularly jumped in front of, causing them to bounce off and confuse whoever sent them long enough for Percy to destroy the monster or knock out the demigod. But he could only hold on for so long before he dropped.

The fighting had been going on all evening for hours without break. They needed reinforcements. Hades had fallen through, but Annabeth held out for Chiron. He would be arriving soon if everything went to plan.

As soon as she thought that, a bright light shone in the east. It wasn’t the sunrise, but it was Kronos riding on a golden chariot. A dozen Laistrygonian giants bore torches before him. Two Hyperboreans carried his black-and-purple banners. The Titan lord looked fresh and rested, his powers at full strength. He was taking his time advancing, letting the demigods wear themselves down.

Annabeth cursed. “I just had to think it.” She turned to Percy. “We have to fall back to the doorway. Hold it at all costs!”

“Go! Run away! Turn back!” someone screamed.

Annabeth was almost tempted to do exactly that, but then she saw Silena and Drew with their hands cupped around their mouths. Charmspeak.

It was helping a little, but no much. The monsters didn’t get very far before they turned right back around fought with vigor.

Dozens of skeletons erupted from the ground. There were dead Revolutionary War soldiers, Civil War soldiers, and Roman legionnaires. Annabeth didn’t know if Nico did that on purpose, but the sight of the Romans seemed to cause Kronos to falter.

“They can be affected by the schism,” Percy called to Annabeth. Apparently Seaweed Brain wasn’t much of a Seaweed Brain right now. “Prometheus was earlier. We can use that!”

Annabeth wasn’t sure what to do with that. Sure, she could alternate between Kronos and Saturn and hope that knocked him off his game, but that would lead to a lot of questions about why she did that and a few  _ oh my gods, the Romans exist! _ revelations.

No, she would have to be smart about it. Which meant she needed a plan.

Then the hunting horn sounded.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yeah so I was like, we've got Athena kids here soooo the ever classic "oi theres a war going on" line was going to get put in here. Honestly one of my favorite scenes in Harry Potter.
> 
> And yes. Ethan and Allegra are cousins. Who is Allegra's godly parent? You'll find that out later.


	19. Hades and Nico Try to Incinerate People (Nico)

AFTER HE LEFT ANNABETH, Nico burst into the shadows and sprang out somewhere along 5th Avenue. It was dumb and he knew Annabeth was trusting him not to do it, but he had to check.

The battle had not reached the Empire State Building yet. The Apollo kids ran around from injured demigod to injured Hunter with gusto. Some of them were armed like they were expecting a fight.

Will was safe. Nico breath a sigh of relief as he dove back into the shadows. When he popped out, a quick glance at the street sign told him he was on Sixth Avenue.

“Nico!” Katie Gardner shouted. “Where have you been?”

Nico waded through telekhines and stabbed them with his sword as he made his way towards the head of the Demeter cabin.

“Trying to get us reinforcements,” Nico admitted. “It didn’t go so well.”

* * *

_ The echo of the Oracle’s scream still rang in his ears as Nico was pulled out of the vision by Hades. Bianca hovered over him uncertainly, glancing between Nico and Hades worriedly. _

_ Hades glared down at Nico. “And just what do you think you’re doing?” _

_ “Father,” Nico said, willing his voice to remain steady. “I need to talk to you.” _

_ With the wave of a hand from Hades, Persephone and Demeter appeared. _

_ “What is possibly so important right now that you would look into things I have forbidden my children from looking into?” Hades growled. _

_ “There’s a war going on up there right now,” Nico said. “Percy, Annabeth, Will…” he hesitated before continuing. “They’re all fighting the Titan army right now. I was supposed to try and get you to come help us, but I can’t just sit here waiting for you to come to your senses!” He was waving his arms around wildly now and the three gods were giving him dirty looks, but Nico was on a roll. _

_ “I’m not going to sit here!” Nico shouted. “I’m asking you to come fight, come help us, and then I’m leaving. I’m going to go help fight the Titans. If you’re done being stupid, then you can come with me!” _

_ Hades’s eyes blazed. “I am a god! You dare tell me what to do? You dare call me stupid?” _

_ “Yes, I do!” Nico said defiantly. _

_ Bianca’s hands flew to her mouth and she watched the scene unfold with wide eyes. “Nico,” she whispered. _

_ “You’re stupid because you won’t lift a finger to help Olympus!” Nico declared. “You claim you just want to protect your palace, but that won’t matter if Olympus falls. You’ll fade along with the rest of the Olympians if the Titans win. _

_ “I am not an Olympian!” Hades spat. “My family has made that quite clear.” _

_ “You are,” Nico said. “Whether you like it or not.” _

_ "You saw what they did to your mother," Hades said. "Zeus killed her. And you would have me help them? They deserve what they get!" _

_ Persephone sighed. "Could we please not talk about that woman?" _

_ "You know what would help this boy?" Demeter mused. "Farming." _

_ Persephone rolled her eyes. "Mother—" _

_ "Six months behind a plow. Excellent character building." _

_ Not happening lady. _

_ Nico stepped in front of his father, forcing Hades to face him. "My mother understood about family. That's why she didn't want to leave us. You can't just abandon your family because they did something horrible. You've done horrible things to them too." _

_ "Maria died!" Hades reminded him. _

_ “Zeus tried to kill Bianca and I,” Nico said. “Well, you’ve tried to kill Thalia and Percy! I’m not saying it’s right, but it doesn’t matter what you say about them because you’ve done things that are just as bad.” He crossed his arms. “Holding grudges is a fatal flaw. Believe me, no one knows that better than me.” _

_ “Fatal flaws are for demigods!” Hades shouted. “I am immortal, all-powerful! I would not help the other gods if they begged me, if Percy Jackson himself pleaded—" _

_ “Shut up!” Nico yelled. _

_ Hades fell silent as did Persephone and Demeter who watched Hades like they were waiting for him to smite Nico. _

_ Nico took a deep breath. “My friends are dying out there. So I’m going now.” _

_ “You’ll give your life for a Camp that does not even respect me?” Hades asked. _

_ “At Camp Half-Blood, they respect _ me _ ,” Nico said. “I used to think I was an outcast there until someone took the time to knock some sense into me in the middle of a life or death situation.” He smiled fondly at the memories. “He said that I could have friends, but I never did anything to get them. You’re an outcast, but if you would stop being angry about it and actually do something helpful for once, maybe the other gods would respect you!” _

_ Hades's palm filled with black fire. _

_ Nico stared him down. “I’m going to walk out of here. Then, either a monster or Kronos himself will kill me, or I’ll survive. But if you want, you can just blast me right now. That’s just what the other gods would expect from you. Prove them right.” _

_ "Yes, please," Demeter complained. "Shut him up." _

_ Persephone sighed. "Oh, I don't know. I would rather fight in the war than eat another bowl of cereal. This is boring." _

_ Hades roared in anger. His fireball hit a silver tree right next to Nico, melting it into a pool of liquid metal. _

_ Nico glanced at the pool of silver. “Goodbye, father. I hope the next time we meet isn’t because of my death.” _

_ He walked out of the palace past the judges, past Cerberus, to the tunnel that would set him out in Central Park. _

* * *

“I tried, but I don’t think my father really believed me when I said I was coming to fight,” Nico said. “I wouldn’t count on him coming to help yet.”

Katie gave him an apologetic shrug. “‘Least you tried. I would have come with you if I knew. Maybe my mother would listen to me. Maybe that would have helped.”

“Nico?” Magnus ran over to him. “Thank God. Is your dad here?”

Nico grimaced. “No. Just me.”

“Oh,” Magnus said, looking dejected. “Well, at least we have one person who hasn’t been fighting for days. Hey, have you seen Annabeth?”

“She was heading to the Park Avenue Tunnel on 33rd,” Nico answered. “Percy, her, and the rest of Athena cabin. Hey!” he shouted as Magnus took off at a run. “Where do you think you’re going?”

A large bird flew past Nico and picked up Magnus.

“Alex!” Nico yelled. “Alex, what are you doing?”

Katie gave Nico a worried look. “I don’t suppose you can summon a bunch of dead warriors?”

“If Will asks, you’re lying through your teeth about the number,” Nico told her. He tapped the ground with the tip of his sword. “Serve me.”

About thirty undead warriors melted out of the ground and charged at the enemy forces. It wasn’t enough though. For every monster taken out, one of the dead warriors was incapacitated.

If they weren’t so overwhelmingly outnumbered, forcing Nico to fight, he could have stayed back and summoned more as needed. Yet all Nico could do was cut through as many monsters as he could and summon one or two more of the dead if he got a break from fighting.

He was starting to regret joining the fight so soon.

_ Please, dad _ , he prayed.  _ If you ever cared about me, or Bianca, or- _

No, no. He would  _ not _ think about Hazel right now.

_ -or any of your kids, please help me now. _

Nothing. As expected.

“Thanks a lot, dad,” Nico muttered.

As the night wore on and the moon got higher, they were backed up foot by foot until they were only a block from the Empire State Building in any direction.

Nico fought mindlessly for hours as the sky darkened. It wasn’t until he saw a group of enemy demigods heading for the infirmary that he shook himself out of it.

Going after the injured was low. Such a cowardly move that he never would have expected from anyone. Well, there were a few people. Namely Octavian, but Nico never imagined Kronos would sink so low.

Nico angrly finished off a group of empousa who seemed startled that he had been able to destroy them so easily. Then he stormed towards the infirmary he knew housed the injured demigods and Hunters along with the whole of Apollo cabin. The ones still alive anyway.

“-to hurt me,” someone was saying as Nico came up on the tent.

“What do you want?” Will’s voice growled.

Going after a healer. That was even worse than the injured. Nico’s blood boiled at the thought of Kronos’s demigods targeting the injured and the healers. He marched up behind the other demigod and held his sword against the demigod’s back.

“From what I understand,” Nico whispered, “the good guys have been trying not to kill enemy demigods. I wouldn’t know though. I just got here. Point is, you’re going after the injured by coming here. So I’m willing to make an exception to the whole no killing thing.”

The demigod laughed. “I’m not here to fight. I’m only offering Will here one last chance to join the winning side.”

Nico’s eyes snapped to look at Will. “So this is Alabaster Torrington. Have to say, I’m not impressed.”

Actually, he kind of was. Alabaster had Imperial Gold blades which, to Nico anyway, indicated that maybe he knew a little about the Romans. Or, worse theory, he had fought and killed a Roman for these blades. In that case, consider him less impressed.

“Nico di Angelo,” Alabaster said back. “Thought you and your father were sitting this one out? Where  _ is _ Hades? Don’t tell me he sent you to die?”

“I don’t need my father to destroy you,” Nico said lowly.

He truly didn’t. It would completely wipe him out and Will would be mad at him until the end of time, but Nico could ghost Alabaster if he really wanted. Not that he wanted. Bryce was a horrible person and Nico felt awful after ghosting him.

Alabaster sighed. “Come on, Will! You have a talent for healing. You’re useful. Those of us on the right side,” he said this as if he was on the right side and Will was on the wrong side, “don’t want to see you dead with a talent like yours! Didn’t you ever wonder why the monsters came for you so early?”

“I did,” Will said. “But I know the answer.” His hand inched backward towards the table full of various medical items Nico didn’t know the names of and weapons.

“So you know you have great healing power,” Alabaster said eagerly. “You know that’s all your dad gave you. He made you into this doctor child of his instead of a watered down carbon copy of himself.”

“I know enough,” Will said angrily.

But Nico didn’t hear what he said next. Alabaster’s words had made him angry. The only watered down version of Apollo was Octavian. Will and his siblings were  _ nothing _ like that Roman creep.

Dozens of skeletons erupted from the ground. There were dead Revolutionary War soldiers, Civil War soldiers, and Roman legionnaires.

A fire blazed in Nico’s eyes. “Leave!” he shouted at Alabaster. “Leave now or I swear I will make sure your afterlife is Tartarus!”

Alabaster looked over his shoulder at Nico. He didn’t say anything, then he turned back to look at Will who had drawn an arrow and aimed it at Alabaster.

“Leave me alone,” Will said.

A hunting horn pierced the night.

Alabaster faltered. “What is that?”

A chorus of horns answered from all around, echoing off the buildings of Manhattan. The horns got louder. It sounded like an entire army was approaching.

Kronos's forces looked as confused as they were. Giants lowered their clubs. Dracaenae hissed. Even Kronos's honor guard looked uneasy. Then, to the left, a hundred monsters cried out at once. Kronos's entire northern flank surged forward. They didn't attack. They ran straight past the demigods and crashed into their southern allies.

A new blast of horns shattered the night. The air shimmered. In a blur of movement, an entire cavalry appeared as if dropping out of light speed.

"Yeah, baby!" a voice wailed. "PARTY!"

A shower of arrows arced over their heads and slammed into the enemy, vaporizing hundreds of demons. But these weren't regular arrows. They made whizzy sounds as they flew, like WHEEEEEE! Some had pinwheels attached to them. Others had boxing gloves rather than points.

"Centaurs!" Annabeth yelled from somewhere.

Alabaster cursed and ran off to join his comrades as the Party Ponies exploded into view. Tie-dyed shirts, rainbow Afro wigs, oversize sunglasses, and war-painted faces. Some had slogans scrawled across their flanks like HORSEZ PWN or KRONOS SUX. Hundreds of them filled the entire block.

One of the centaurs locked and loaded a double-barrel paint gun and blasted an enemy hellhound bright pink. The paint must've been mixed with Celestial bronze dust or something, because as soon as it splattered the hellhound, the monster yelped and dissolved into a pink-and-black puddle.

"PARTY PONIES," a centaur yelled. "SOUTH FLORIDA!"

Somewhere across the battlefield, a twangy voice yelled back, "HEART OF TEXAS CHAPTER!"

"HAWAII OWNS YOUR FACES!" a third one shouted.

The entire Titan army turned and fled, pushed back by a flood of paintballs, arrows, swords, and NERF baseball bats. The centaurs trampled everything in their path.

"Stop running, you fools!" Kronos yelled. "Stand and ACKK!"

Nico didn’t know what happened to the Titan Lord, and he didn’t particularly care. He focused on Will and gave him an incredulous look.

“You  _ knew _ he would be here,” he said.

Will looked away. “Yeah. I just wanted to, I don’t know, prove to myself that I wasn’t absolutely terrified of Alabaster Torrington anymore. On the Philadelphia mission, I ran into him again and… I couldn’t do anything. Everything happened the same because I saw him and I was back in that moment.” He cleared his throat. “Can we not talk about this right now? In the middle of a war?”

Nico rolled his eyes. “Yeah okay. I’ve got an army of skeletons and nothing else to do with them but fight some monsters.” He gave Will a look. “Do  _ not  _ die until I get back.”

“I’ll just stay alive then!” Will called after Nico as he raced down the street after the Titan army.

Nico fought alongside several startled to see him demigods as they pushed the Titan army back for several blocks until Chiron yelled, “HOLD! On your promise, HOLD!”

Nico found Percy, Annabeth, and Chiron as Annabeth was saying, “Chiron’s smart. If we pursue, we’ll get too spread out. We need to regroup.” She glanced down the street. “They aren’t defeated, but dawn is coming. We’ve bought ourselves some more time.”

Chiron trotted up alongside Nico. “Good to see you, Mr. di Angelo.”

“You too, Chiron,” Nico said.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yeah, so I know this didn't really progress much further than where the last chapter left off with the horn, but I wanted to get Nico's conversation with Hades in and then the thing with Alabaster.
> 
> Also... I love the party ponies. It would be so cool to see them in action again in Tower of Nero maybe? No? Wishful thinking? Oh well.


	20. Alex and Annabeth Stop and Chit Chat (Alex)

IN ALEX’S OPINION, the Party Ponies were totally awesome.

Charging into battle wearing tie-dyed shirts, rainbow Afro wigs, oversized sunglasses, and crazy war paint designed faces? Cool. Slogans insulting Kronos? Hilarious. Not to mention the paint guns they used to shoot monsters? Completely and utterly amazing. Alex would like one of those in green and pink thank you very much.

“What was up with you two running off?” Nico demanded. “Or… flying off, I guess.”

Alex looked at Magnus pointedly. “Ask him.”

Magnus crossed his arms. “I just wanted to know where Annabeth was. I hadn’t seen her since that afternoon.”

“Speaking of me,” Annabeth said, looking at Alex and Magnus. “I have to tell you something. Just let us get the Party Ponies settled in.”

“I’ll go with you,” Alex volunteered brightly. She gave Annabeth what she hoped was an innocent look.

“You look like you’re about to go steal someone’s puppy,” Magnus informed her.

Alex gave him a look. “I would never.”

“Well, you look like you’re going to steal  _ something _ ,” he said.

“Yeah, a paint gun if I can get my hands on one.”

Annabeth threw her hands up. “Okay. Alex, you can come with me. Percy, set up a two-block perimeter. Magnus, go see if Will needs your help. Nico… go with Percy. Can you set up skeleton patrols? Will that tire you out too much?”

“I’ll be fine,” Nico said. “Once I summon them, they follow my orders until I dismiss them. I’ll just take a long nap after this.”

“Perfect, let’s go,” Annabeth sighed.

As they walked back to the Empire State Building, Chiron informed Annabeth and Alex that the Party Ponies had sent chapters from almost every state in the Union: forty from California, two from Rhode Island, thirty from Illinois… Roughly five hundred total had answered his call, but even with that many, they couldn't defend more than a few blocks.

"Dude," said a centaur named Larry. His T-shirt identified him as BIG CHIEF UBER GUY, NEW MEXICO CHAPTER. "That was more fun than our last convention in Vegas!"

"Yeah," said Owen from South Dakota. He wore a black leather jacket and an old WWII army helmet. "We totally wasted them!"

Chiron patted Owen on the back. "You did well, my friends, but don't get careless. Kronos should never be underestimated. Now why don't you visit the diner on West 33rd and get some breakfast? I hear the Delaware chapter found a stash of root beer."

"Root beer!" They almost trampled each other as they galloped off.

“Chiron, can you get me one of the Party Ponies’ paint guns?” Alex wondered.

“I’m not sure that would be advisable,” Chiron said, looking slightly alarmed.

Annabeth cut him off with a hug. “Gods, it's good to see you, Chiron.”

Chiron hugged her back. “I’m sorry it took so long. Centaurs travel fast, as you know. We can bend distance as we ride. Even so, getting all the centaurs together was no easy task. The Party Ponies are not exactly organized.”

“Well, I love them,” Alex announced.

Annabeth shook her head. “Um, Chiron? What’s the status with Typhon?”

Chiron’s face darkened. “The gods are tiring. Dionysus was incapacitated yesterday. Typhon smashed his chariot, and the wine god went down somewhere in the Appalachians. No one has seen him since. Hephaestus is out of action as well. He was thrown from the battle so hard he created a new lake in West Virginia. He will heal, but not soon enough to help. The others still fight. They’ve managed to slow Typhon’s approach. But the monster cannot be stopped. He will arrive in New York by this time tomorrow. Once he and Kronos combine forces-”

“What about  _ other _ gods?” Alex suggested hesitantly.

Annabeth’s lips pursed. “Other gods? You mean… not Greek gods. Alex-”

“It was just a suggestion,” she said defensively. “I don’t like it any more than you do, but maybe it would be enough to throw Kronos off his game.”

“Or cause a war between demigods,” Annabeth said. “I mean, there’s a reason only a few people know about this.”

“Annabeth’s right,” Chiron agreed. “Two groups of demigods meeting? That would only end in disaster. I’ve seen it before. They gods had a difficult time cleaning up that mess.”

“Just an idea,” Alex said. “A last resort.” She glanced down the street the monsters had retreated down. “I mean, Typhon will be here tomorrow. Kronos isn’t defeated. He’ll probably be back tonight. Even with Nico and the centaurs… I don’t know how we can hold them off.”

“We’ll have to,” Thalia insisted. “I’ll see about setting some new traps around the perimeter.” She looked exhausted. Her jacket was smeared in grime and monster dust, but she managed to get to her feet and stagger off.

"I will help her," Chiron decided. "I should make sure my brethren don't go too overboard with the root beer." He cantered off, leaving Annabeth and Alex alone.

Alex looked at Annabeth. “What did you want to tell me?”

“It’s about your prophecy,” Annabeth said. “I think I know what you have to do.”

* * *

Annabeth wouldn’t say anything else until Magnus, Percy, and Nico were with them. If she could have dragged Will away from his infirmary, Annabeth probably would have insisted he be there too.

“What’s going on?” Percy asked.

“Two things,” Annabeth said. “First, Typhon will be here tomorrow. Which we already knew, but Dionysus and Hephaestus are out of action. Second, I think I know what Magnus and Alex have to do about the prophecy.”

“Save traitors,” Magnus grumbled. “Yeah. We know.”

“I talked to Allegra,” Annabeth said. “Turns out, she’s Ethan’s cousin.”

Nico raised his eyebrows. “Cousin? Wow. So Allegra Nakamura? Who’s her godly parent?”

“I don’t know,” Annabeth sighed. “We had to fall back before she could answer. But here’s the thing. Allegra didn’t even know about Camp. I mean, her reaction back in the Labyrinth proves that. She’s only helping the Titans because Ethan is and he’s her cousin. Her last family left that cares for her.”

“We never met Allegra last time,” Percy finally said. “What?” he asked when he noticed all the looks everyone was giving him. “We were all thinking about it. Allegra Nakamura didn’t exist before we time traveled.”

Alex felt an odd chill. Her heartbeat sped up. Not once had anyone ever put a name to their situation. Hearing the words spoken aloud…

“That  _ is _ what happened,” Percy said. “Time. Travel.”

They had alluded to it. Odd phrasing that was obscure enough that no one would actually say the words. Phrases like  _ this never happened before _ or  _ we know this _ .

“Time travel,” Alex repeated. “Yeah.”

Nico coughed. “Okay, well, why does she exist now?”

“Percy was on Ogygia for two weeks last time,” Annabeth said quietly. “We went back into the maze a full week earlier than we should have. Instead of finding Lu… Luke already in the arena, he captured us and brought us there with him. If demigods had to fight for their place in his army, maybe Allegra didn’t last very long.”

Magnus gave Annabeth an incredulous look. “Whoa. You think she died?”

“It makes sense,” Percy said uncomfortably. “I mean, Allegra wasn’t even trying when we fought in the arena. Ethan did most of the work.

“So you want Alex and I to save a supposed-to-be-dead girl and her cousin?” Magnus asked.

“Ethan also died originally,” Percy added unhelpfully.

“If we save one, then we save the other,” Alex said slowly. “Right?”

Annabeth frowned. “Maybe. I don’t know. I’m pretty sure Allegra will follow Ethan, but…” she trailed off. “Look, we should all get some rest. Magnus, I’m sure Will needs your help, and you’ll definitely need rest after that. Kronos isn’t going to attack until, well, until later.” She looked resigned and defeated.

“You okay?” Magnus asked her with concern.

“Hmm?” Annabeth asked, snapping her head up to look at her cousin. “Yeah. Fine.”

“We haven’t really talked about what happens at the end,” Nico pointed out. “If you can’t face him, that’s fine, Annabeth.”

Alex felt kind of lost. “Why wouldn’t Annabeth be able to face Kronos?”

“Luke,” Percy said quietly. “He’s possessing Luke. Luke and Thalia and Annabeth all used to be really close.”

“We were on the run together for a while,” Annabeth admitted.

Alex got that. She’d seen the bond Magnus had with Blitz and Hearth. Even his loyalty to other kids on the streets. Something like that, well, when you went through that with someone… it connected you. Made you almost like family. Or something more.

She understood that. And she knew how that felt. Especially when that someone is ripped away from you. Though, Alex honestly had to say that she would prefer losing someone to death than how Annabeth had apparently lost Luke.

“I… I know Thalia doesn’t think I can face him,” Annabeth said. “But I’ll be fine. I’ll do what I have to do. Honestly, I’ve made my peace with Luke’s fate a long time ago. So… it’ll be hard, but I  _ will  _ do what I have to do.”

Alex didn’t really like the wistful look on Annabeth’s face. Quite frankly, Percy had a similar expression when they talked about Luke. If those two were holding out hope that Luke could change or could be saved… Everything came down to Percy’s choice at the end of this according to the Great Prophecy.

_ A half-blood of the eldest gods, _

_ Shall reach sixteen against all odds, _

_ And see the world in endless sleep, _

_ The hero’s soul, cursed blade shall reap, _

_ A single choice shall end his days, _

_ Olympus to preserve or raze _ .

Everything had been leading up to that moment. Even the prophecy Percy had been given before the quest to save Artemis. Alex recognized hints to the Great Prophecy in the lines Magnus had told her after she’d been rescued.

_ Against all odds he knows the way _ had to refer to how Percy would reach sixteen against all odds.  _ And start your journey to preserve or raze _ . Well, that was way too close of a wording to  _ not _ refer to the Great Prophecy.

“Percy?” Nico waved a hand in front of Percy’s face.

Percy started. “What?”

“You were zoned out for a second,” Magnus said.

“Message from Mr. D,” Percy waved it off. “It’s fine. Nothing I don’t already know. Like Annabeth said, let’s rest up. We’ll need it.”

They all went to disperse, but Alex pulled Annabeth back.

“What’s up?” Annabeth asked.

Alex shook her head. “Just… if you ever want to talk about Luke and everything with your time on the run… Magnus and I get it. I mean, we didn’t always have keys to the mini bar and huge suite rooms.”

Understanding dawned in Annabeth’s eyes. She gave Alex a small smile. “Thanks, Alex. Means a lot. I guess I forget that.” She sighed. “Thalia and Luke were like a family for me when I met them, but almost immediately it fell apart. Thalia was turned into a tree and Luke and I weren’t really the same after that. Then Luke joined Kronos and…” she trailed off. “My fatal flaw is pride,” she admitted. “I want to fix everything. Even Luke.”

They started walking back towards the Empire State Building.

“Even after he’s betrayed you so many times?” Alex asked.

Annabeth laughed weakly. “Especially after that. It just makes me want to fix him even more. I… well, I wouldn’t say I love him, but he  _ is _ family. I’ll give him all the second chances in the world.”

They fell into silence.

Alex tried to ignore what Annabeth had said, but in her experience, family had caused nothing but pain.

Annabeth seemed to realize that because she looked at Alex and said, “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said that.”

“Nah, I mean, you have a great family,” Alex said, trying to sound nonchalant. “Your dad’s pretty cool. Step-mom is tolerable. You’ve got two brothers who adore you. Then Magnus. Percy and his family are practically a second family to you.”

“They weren’t always like that,” Annabeth said. “My stepmother is the reason I ran away. She didn’t like that I brought monsters. My dad wasn’t home enough to know what was going on. So I left. It took Percy convincing me multiple times to try again with them.”

“You saying I should try again with my father? And my mother?”

Annabeth shook her head. “No. I won’t tell you what to do. Mostly, I think I just needed closure. I was still hurting from everything that happened before.” She pulled at a ring on her camp necklace. “It's my dad’s college ring. I was still hoping that my family would take me back. And they did, but we went through a lot to get there. You, Alex… when I look at you, you’ve already moved on. Maybe you’re too good at hiding it, but you have your closure. Whatever it is. So if you want to give your father a second chance, that’s up to you. But know that you should always do what’s best for you.”

“Thanks, Annabeth,” Alex said as they arrived outside the building.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh boy. I really struggled to write that last scene. It was really difficult for me to try and get Alex's character right and Annabeth's response right. So I hope I did a good job with that.


	21. Getting Killed in Painful, Nasty Ways is Unavoidable, but Don't Look for the Wolf-Headed Doors (Magnus)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, so originally, the chapter was Chapter 21: You Keep Using The Word Triage. I Do Not Think It Means What You Think It Means (Magnus). I liked this title at the time or writing it, but now... I honestly don't. So if you have an idea, please leave a comment.
> 
> I went through a brief few days of wanting to use movie references for titles. This one is actually used in the Magnus Chase books, but if you didn't know, it's a reference to a quote by Inigo Montoya from a movie called the Princess Bride. The actual quote is "You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means."
> 
> Edit 9/14/2020: Finally got a title in here! This is taken from Percy's opening monologue ("...most of the time it gets you killed in painful, nasty ways...") and Magnus's monologue ("...you shouldn't even think about finding the wolf-headed doors...")

THERE WAS NOTHING MORE DEPRESSING than hauling an army of injured demigods around. Not to mention the dead ones.

“Will!” Magnus called as he arrived at the makeshift infirmary. “Anything I can help with?”

Will looked relieved. “Yes. Uh, can you-”

“Will!” It was Thalia this time and she was walking towards them, bow slung across her back.

“What’s wrong?” Will asked. “You hurt?”

Thalia shook her head. “No. You need to move to Olympus. It’ll be out of the fighting the longest.” She sighed. “We need reinforcements,” she mumbled. “Typhon’s on his way too.” She shook her head. “I’ll send some help your way. Get everyone moved.”

Magnus cast a glance up at the large building. “Up to Olympus? But if Typhon is on his way, isn’t that the last place we should be?”

“Like I said,” Thalia said. “Olympus will be out of the way the longest. If the gods can’t stop Typhon and we can’t stop Kronos… doesn’t matter anymore. I’d rather die protecting the injured and dead and Olympus and still lose than die protecting Olympus and not the injured or dead and still loose.” She strode off.

Will turned to Magnus. “You can help move the injured up to Olympus I guess. Once we get up there, you can go around healing people.”

“Or I could heal people now and you don’t have to carry them up there,” Magnus suggested.

“No!” Will shouted.

Magnus jumped back, hand flying to his pendant where Jack was resting.

Will bit his lip. “Sorry. I just need you to come with me up there. I… I don’t know if it happened, but I might need you to help me.”

Magnus dropped his hand. “Okay. Help with what?”

“My sister,” Will said quietly. “She needs you to heal her or she’ll die.”

“Your sister - Kayla?” Magnus asked, eyes searching for Kayla among the injured. “Lydia?”

Will shook his head. “Alice. There’s no time to discuss this though. We need to get everyone out of the way now.”

Magnus and Will weaved their way through the infirmary until they found Michael who was talking to Kayla.

“Thalia just came by,” Will informed Michael. “She wants us to move to Olympus.”

Michael’s face went pale. “Right. Okay.” He cleared his throat. “Hey!” he yelled. “Anyone who can walk needs to start heading up to Olympus. If you can carry supplies too, that would be great. If you can’t walk, someone will come help you get to the elevator.”

Magnus would have liked his extra einherji strength for this. He could have carried two injured demigods and bags of supplies. Now he was stuck carrying one demigod at a time.

Campers and Hunters limped into the elevator with bags of ambrosia or bandages or even Advil. Some of them were helping the more injured campers because there weren't enough people to help them.

Magnus didn’t watch as the dying and dead campers and Hunters were carried by. He didn’t want to see the glazed looks in eyes that wouldn’t see anything ever again.

Death was nothing new to him. He and Alex were always surrounded by death. The only thing different with this death was that this was permanent. Permanent death sucked.

“Okay,” Michael said, letting out a breath. “Will and Lydia, you two go to Olympus. Kayla, Austin, Max, Zachary, and Angelica can stay here with me.” He glanced at Magnus. “Magnus, you go with Will and Lydia. And if you three see Alice, can you send her my way?”

Will swallowed. “Yeah. Sure thing.”

“You got it,” Kayla nodded. She looked at her siblings. “Let’s go. We should find as many arrows as we can.”

They headed off to join the Hunters who were scrounging for arrows as Magnus made his way into the elevator with Will and Lydia.

“Have you seen Alice?” Will asked Lydia carefully.

Lydia’s face was pale. “I saw her come up earlier. Will? Are we going to lose?”

Magnus sent Will a panicked look, but Will remained outwardly calm.

“No,” Will said firmly. “Kronos is bad and the bad guy always loses, right? We’re going to keep fighting until he loses.”

“I miss my mom,” Lydia whimpered. “I miss Lee.”

“I… I miss my mom and Lee too,” Will told her. “But it’s going to be okay, Lydia. I promise. I won’t let anything bad happen to you.”

“Pinky promise?”

“Pinky... pinky promise.”

Magnus pretended not to hear the hesitation in Will’s voice. Lydia was far younger than anyone who should see war. They all were, really. But he had to admire Will’s ability to keep a level head when talking to Lydia.

He had a sneaking suspicion that the only reason Lydia was sent up to Olympus was her age. As the youngest child of Apollo by far, Lydia was barely old enough to work in the infirmary, and she had shown much more proficiency in archery than healing.

When they reached the top, Magnus barely had time to marvel in the view of Olympus when he was roughly dragged off towards Alice who was wrapping a bandage around her stomach with a grimace.

“Alice!” Will called.

Alice looked up. “I’m fine, Will. Just an arrow wound. Don’t worry about me. Take care of the others first.” Her expression twisted as she spoke, like every word caused her pain.

Lydia hurried over to start helping the nature spirits who were tending to the wounded, but Will and Magnus stayed with Alice.

“I’m serious, Will,” Alice said. “Go help someone else.”

Will glared at her. “I know that arrow was poisoned, Alice. You can’t make me ignore that.”

Alice wasn’t able to mask her surprise. “How did you-”

“Alice, please,” Will begged. He looked at Magnus. “Come on, heal her.”

“Don’t.” Alice’s voice cut the air like ice. She gave Magnus a long look. “I don’t know how you can do what you can do. You aren’t a child of Apollo, but one touch from you can heal anything. Still, you understand healing. Saving lives. In triage you want to maximize the lives saved, right, Magnus? If you drain all your energy on me, how many lives  _ can’t _ you save?”

Will sent Magnus a pleading look. Magnus averted his eyes and stared at the bandage around Alice’s midsection. Even without touching it, he knew it was bad. Alice had hours if she was lucky, minutes if she wasn’t. And she knew that too.

“Healing you would tire me out,” Magnus said slowly. “Maybe I could save a few others, but… Will, she’s right.”

Will opened his mouth to protest, but Alice cut him off.

“I don’t want you to put me over anyone else,” she said. “Go over there. Save some kids. I’ll be okay.”

“Alice, I don’t want to lose you again,” Will said. He gripped her arm. “Please. Please let Magnus heal you.”

“I can’t do that,” Alice said, wrenching her arm from his grip. “Now get going. If you stand around moping while other people are dying, I’ll tell the three judges to pass on a message to Nico. Ask him to beat you up for me.”

Will wrapped his arms around his torso. He squeezed his eyes shut. “Okay,” he finally whispered. “Okay, Alice. Just… just stay here. I’ll be right back.”

Alice smirked. “I ain’t going anywhere.”

Poor word choice, in Magnus’s opinion. He felt guilty. Will had brought him up here to save Alice, yet he wouldn’t be doing that. If anything, he was condemning Alice.

But he and Will moved on to the larger group of demigods. Magnus healed a lot of broken legs and arms and he healed a few concussions.

After the twentieth injury, Magnus couldn’t fight off the yawns anymore and Will told him to go lay down for a few minutes.

“Recharge,” Will said. “You might need your energy.”

Jack buzzed against his chest to confirm Will’s statement, so Magnus trudged over to where he and Will had seen Alice.

When he got to Alice, her face was ashen and her eyes were closed tightly.

“Alice?” Magnus asked.

Her eyes opened. “If you’ve come here to heal me, I’ll just turn you away.”

“I’m supposed to be resting,” Magnus admitted. “But I figured I could keep you company until…”

“Until I move on to stand before the judges,” Alice finished. “Thank you, Magnus. I… I’d rather not be alone. But I didn’t want Will or… or Lydia to see me like this. I’m their older sister. I’ve got to protect them, right?” She laughed weakly. “Tell me something, Magnus. Anything.”

Magnus hesitated. “You asked about my powers before. You’re right. I’m not a child of Apollo, but my dad is the god of healing.”

Alice made a noise as she leaned back against a tree. “Not Greek?”

“Yeah,” Magnus said. “Norse, actually. Frey.”

“What are you doing with a bunch of Greeks then?”

“Making sure my cousin doesn’t die mostly,” Magnus said. “And Alex really likes Camp. I like it too.”

“Alex is Norse then too?” Alice managed. “Mom or dad anyone I’d know?”

_ In a couple years maybe _ , Magnus wanted to say.  _ Though you’d probably think he’s as hot as the rest of Midgard claims _ . Instead he said. “Loki. Her mom is Loki.”

Alice hummed. “Who’s that?”

“He’s the guy that’s supposed to end the world,” Magnus said. “So… he’s really great.”

Alice started to laugh, but cut off quickly, holding her stomach.

Magnus reached for her. “I can help, Alice.”

“No,” Alice pushed his hand away. “Please don’t. You’re no good if you kill yourself healing me.”

“You’re no good dead.”

“Fair point,” Alice said. “But better me dead and you alive than the both of us dead. I doubt you have enough power left to save me.”

“I could still try,” Magnus said. “I… Alex and I are supposed to save people. We saved Beckendorf and Castor and countless others just by being here. We were supposed to save you too.”

Alice looked confused. “What are you talking about, Magnus?”

Magnus paused. “Nothing. Don’t worry about it.”

Alice closed her eyes. “I’m glad I met you, Magnus. Alex too. Will you go to a Norse camp? Do they have one for you guys?”

“Kind of,” Magnus admitted. “It’s a Hotel. Hotel Valhalla. That’s where the honorable dead go. If I die with a weapon in my hand, a Valkyrie will take me there when I die.”

“Fun,” Alice snorted with a wince. She sighed. “I guess this is goodbye then.”

“Yeah,” Magnus agreed. He yawned.

Alice gave him a sad look. “Go to sleep, Magnus.”

“Sleep,” Magnus mumbled.

* * *

_ He was standing in the street staring at a huge dragon looking thing. It was two-hundred-feet-long and as thick as a school bus. It had yellow eyes like searchlights and a mouth full of razor-sharp teeth big enough to chew elephants. Enemy soldiers advanced beside it. _

_ “I’ll take the drakon,” he squeaked. Then, louder, he yelled, “I’LL TAKE THE DRAKON! Everyone else, hold the line against the army.” He looked next to himself at Annabeth who looked like she had been crying. “Will you help me?” he asked. _

_ "That's what I do," she said miserably. "I help my friends." _

_ For some reason, he felt awful, like he was the reason Annabeth was upset. But there wasn’t time to make things right. _

_ "Go invisible," he said. "Look for weak links in its armor while I keep it busy. Just be careful." He whistled. "Mrs. O'Leary, heel!" _

_ "ROOOF!" The hellhound leaped over a line of centaurs and gave him a kiss that smelled suspiciously of pepperoni pizza. _

_ He drew his sword (it wasn’t  _ his _ thought) and they charged the monster. _

_ The fight wasn’t going well at all. Centaurs and campers alike were overwhelmed and nothing he was doing was helping much. _

_ Finally, Annabeth materialized on the drakon’s back. Her invisibility cap rolled off her head as she drove her bronze knife between a chink in the serpent’s scales. The drakon roared. It coiled around, knocking Annabeth off its back. _

_ He dragged Annabeth out of the way before the serpent could roll and crush her. _

_ “Thanks,” she said. _

_ "I told you to be careful!" _

_ "Yeah, well, DUCK!" She tackled him as the monster's teeth snapped above his head. Mrs. _

_ O'Leary body-slammed the drakon's face to get its attention, and they rolled out of the way. _

_ The campers had retreated to the doors of the Empire State Building. They were surrounded by the enemy. _

_ Then he heard a rumbling in the south. A girl’s voice yelled, “ARES!” _

_ And a dozen war chariots charged into battle. Each flew a red banner with the symbol of the wild boar's head. Each was pulled by a team of skeletal horses with manes of fire. A total of thirty fresh warriors, armor gleaming and eyes full of hate, lowered their lances as one—making a bristling wall of death. _

_ "The children of Ares!" Annabeth said in amazement. "How did Rachel know?" _

_ He didn’t have time to ask who Rachel was as the lead girl, Clarisse, led the Ares kids into battle. _

_ The monster bared its fangs to strike and got a mouthful of Celestial bronze javelins. _

_ "EEESSSSS!!!!!" it screamed. _

_ "Ares, to me!" Clarisse screamed. _

_ For a minute, things were going good. Then everything went wrong. The drakon snapped up one Ares camper in a gulp. It knocked aside another and sprayed poison on a third, who retreated in a panic, his armor melting. _

_ "We have to help," Annabeth said. _

_ He nodded and looked at Mrs. O’Leary. “Stay back, girl. You’ve done enough already.” _

_ He and Annabeth jumped onto the monster’s back and ran toward its head, trying to draw its attention away from Clarisse. _

_ Her cabinmates threw javelins, most of which broke, but some lodged in the monster's teeth. It snapped its jaws together until its mouth was a mess of green blood, yellow foamy poison, and splintered weapons. _

_ "You can do it!" he screamed at Clarisse. "A child of Ares is destined to kill it!" _

_ Clarisse’s eyes shone with fear. Something told him that something was wrong. _

_ "ARES!" Clarisse shouted. She leveled her spear and charged the drakon. _

_ "No," he muttered. "WAIT!" _

_ But the monster looked down at her—almost in contempt—and spit poison directly in her face. She screamed and fell. _

_ "Clarisse!" Annabeth jumped off the monster's back and ran to help, while the other Ares campers tried to defend their fallen counselor. He drove his sword (no, it wasn’t  _ his _ , it wasn’t Jack) between two of the creature's scales and managed to turn its attention on him. _

_ He got thrown but he landed on his feet. "C'MON, you stupid worm! Look at me!" _

_ He fought and fought until another girl’s voice interrupted him. _

_ “NO!” she cried, shaken with grief. “Curse you, WHY?” _

_ Clarisse was kneeling over the fallen girl, but that couldn’t be right because Clarisse  _ was _ the fallen girl. His heart sank. Someone had pretended to be Clarisse. But why? _

_ He was so stunned, the drakon almost snapped him in half. He dodged and the beast buried its head in a brick wall. _

_ "WHY?" The real Clarisse demanded, holding the other girl in her arms while the campers struggled to remove the poison-corroded helmet. _

_ Chris Rodriguez ran over from the flying chariot. Why was he and Clarisse riding that? Wasn’t it banned until after the war? _

_ The drakon tugged its head from the brick wall and screamed in rage. _

_ "Look out!" Chris warned. _

_ Instead of turning toward him, the drakon whirled toward the sound of Chris's voice. It bared its fangs at the group of demigods. _

_ The real Clarisse looked up at the drakon, her face filled with absolute hate. "YOU WANT DEATH?" Clarisse screamed at the drakon. "WELL, COME ON!" _

_ She grabbed her spear from the fallen girl. With no armor or shield, she charged the drakon. She leaped aside as the monster struck, pulverizing the ground in front of her. Then she jumped onto the creature's head. As it reared up, she drove her electric spear into its good eye with so much force it shattered the shaft, releasing all of the magic weapon's power. _

_ Electricity arced across the creature's head, causing its whole body to shudder. Clarisse jumped free, rolling safely to the sidewalk as smoke boiled from the drakon's mouth. The drakon's flesh dissolved, and it collapsed into a hollow scaly tunnel of armor. _

_ Everyone stared at Clarisse in awe. But Clarisse didn't seem to care. She ran back to the wounded girl who'd stolen her armor. _

_ Finally Annabeth managed to remove the girl's helmet. They all gathered around: the Ares campers, Chris, Clarisse, Annabeth, and him. The battle still raged along Fifth Avenue, but for that moment nothing existed except their small circle and the fallen girl. _

_ Her features, once beautiful, were badly burned from poison. No amount of nectar or ambrosia would save her. _

Something is about to happen, _ the words of some girl rang in his ears. She sounded familiar for some reason.  _ A trick that ends in death _. _

_ He looked down at the dying face of Silena Beauregard.  _

* * *

“Magnus!”

He woke with a start and stared up at Will’s face. Will’s eyes were red and he glanced behind him at Nico. “You have to go,” he said.

“What’s going on?” Magnus asked as he sat up. Alice’s body was no longer next to him. “Is Annabeth okay? Is Alex okay?”

“She’s with me,” Nico said, pulling Alex over into Magnus’s eyesight. He looked worried. “But you have to go now! Alex will fly you there.”

“What?” Magnus sputtered. “Why me?”

“It’s Silena,” Alex said. “She’s hurt.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That last part, the dream, was Magnus dreaming he was Percy in the original timeline if it wasn't obvious. Like in Titan's Curse when Percy was seeing through Hercules's eyes.
> 
> Also, I've said this before, but Alice is an OC daughter of Apollo from Always Towards the Sun. Spoilers sort of but she does die in that story as you may have guessed from Will wanted to save her this go around. I wanted to save her, but I do have my reasons for keeping her death in here.
> 
> And oh dear, what happened with Silena?
> 
> Like I said in the notes at the top, if you have a better chapter title, please let me know because I don't have one for this. Unless y'all really like this triage thing, but I personally don't like it much anymore.


	22. Houston, We Have A Problem (Percy)

PERCY WOULD HAVE LIKED to say that he went to rest. That he heeded his and his girlfriend’s words.

The truth was, he went inside the Empire State Building and sat on one of the cots. This particular cot had a black and white Greek jar innocently sitting atop it.

He held it in his hands and stared at it for a while.

“Percy?” Chiron’s voice interrupted him. The old centaur stared at the jar with wide eyes. “That isn’t-”

“Pandora’s jar,” Percy sighed. “Yeah.” He told him about the meeting with Prometheus.

"Then the jar is yours," Chiron said grimly. "It will follow you and tempt you to open it, no matter where you leave it. It will appear when you are weakest."

“Yeah, I know,” Percy grumbled. “Like now. Weakened defenses and no help on the way. If I surrender now, there’s still a chance that I could save the lives of everyone here. But,” he said before Chiron could interrupt. “But, everyone else would be in danger.”

Chiron gave him a reassuring pat on the shoulder. “Get some sleep, Percy.”

“How can I sleep with this hanging over my head?” Percy asked, gesturing to Pandora’s pithos.

Chiron sent him an amused look. “You may be invulnerable in combat, but that only makes your body tire faster.”

“I’ll try, Chiron,” Percy sighed. He placed the pithos at the foot of the cot on the floor and lay down.

A second later, his eyes closed.

* * *

_ In his dream, Percy was standing outside the United Nations complex where the Titan army had set up camp. The flagpoles were hung with horrible trophies—helmets and armor pieces from defeated campers. All along First Avenue, giants sharpened their axes. Telkhines repaired armor at makeshift forges. _

_ Kronos himself paced at the top of the plaza, swinging his scythe so his dracaenae bodyguards stayed way back. Ethan Nakamura and Prometheus stood nearby, out of slicing range. Ethan was fidgeting with his shield straps, but Prometheus looked as calm and collected as ever in his tuxedo. _

_ "I hate this place," Kronos growled. "United Nations. As if mankind could ever unite. Remind me to tear down this building after we destroy Olympus." _

_ "Yes, lord." Prometheus smiled as if his master's anger amused him. "Shall we tear down the stables in Central Park too? I know how much horses can annoy you." _

_ "Don't mock me, Prometheus! Those cursed centaurs will be sorry they interfered. I will feed them to the hellhounds, starting with that son of mine—that weakling Chiron." _

_ Prometheus shrugged. "That weakling destroyed an entire legion of telkhines with his arrows." _

_ Kronos swung his scythe and cut a flagpole in half. The national colors of Brazil toppled into the army, squashing a dracaena. "We will destroy them!" Kronos roared. "It is time to unleash the drakon. Nakamura, you will do this." _

_ "Y-yes, lord. At sunset?" _

_ "No," Kronos said. "Immediately. The defenders of Olympus are badly wounded. They will not expect a quick attack. I want Olympus in ruins by the time Typhon reaches New York. We will break the gods utterly!"  _

_ "But, my lord," Ethan said. "Your regeneration." _

_ Kronos pointed at Ethan, and the demigod froze. "Does it seem," Kronos hissed, "that I need to regenerate?" _

_ Ethan didn't respond. Kind of hard to do when you're immobilized in time. _

_ Kronos snapped his fingers and Ethan collapsed. _

_ "Soon," the Titan growled, "this form will be unnecessary. I will not rest with victory so close. Now, go!" _

_ Ethan scrambled away. _

_ "This is dangerous, my lord," Prometheus warned. "Do not be hasty." _

_ "Hasty? After festering for three thousand years in the depths of Tartarus, you call me hasty? I will slice Percy Jackson into a thousand pieces." _

_ "Thrice you've fought him," Prometheus pointed out. "And yet you've always said it is beneath the dignity of a Titan to fight a mere mortal. I wonder if your mortal host is influencing you, weakening your judgment." _

_ Kronos turned his golden eyes on the other Titan. "You call me weak?" _

_ "No, my lord. I only meant—" _

_ "Are your loyalties divided?" Kronos asked. "Perhaps you miss your old friends, the gods. Would you like to join them?" _

_ Prometheus paled. "I misspoke, my lord. Your orders will be carried out." He turned to the armies and shouted, "PREPARE FOR BATTLE!" _

_ The troops began to stir. _

_ An angry roar shook the city. _

* * *

Percy sat up. “Time to go!” he said loudly.

Annabeth hurried over. She had her cell phone in one hand. “Rachel just called. I told her you were sleeping, but she wanted me to tell you what she saw.”

“We already know that,” Percy said, confused. “I’m not the hero and the drakon is coming.”

Annabeth shook her head. “No. Not that.” Her eyes looked sad. “Percy, she said something is about to happen. And she says it ends with death.”

“Silena has no reason to attack the drakon,” Percy said. “No one is going to die if I can help it.”

“Maybe we can’t help it,” Annabeth said.

Percy gave her an incredulous look. “Annabeth, I saved Beckendorf! I didn’t do that so Silena could be ripped away from him. I won’t let her die.”

Annabeth bit her lip. “Okay, Percy, but what do we do?”

He cast a look at the pithos still at the foot of the cot. Then he looked back at Annabeth. “Get ready.”

* * *

Percy counted a total of thirty campers, twenty Hunters, and a dozen satyrs left in fighting shape. The Party Ponies tried to form ranks, but they staggered and giggles and they all smelled like root beer. The Texans were head-butting the Coloradoans. The Missouri branch was arguing with Illinois. The chances were pretty good the whole army would end up fighting each other rather than the enemy.

The heads met together with Chiron and Thalia.

“Greek fire?” Percy asked Beckendorf hopefully.

Beckendorf shook his head. “Ran out. We could make more, but not before the attack.”

“The Titans have been waiting till night,” Katie frowned. “Why are they attacking again so quickly?”

“Because we won’t expect it,” Percy said. “At least, that’s what Kronos thinks. He’s sending a special drakon our way. It can only be killed by a child of Ares.”

Clarisse snorted. “Easy.”

“Still,” Annabeth said with a pointed look at Clarisse, “there will be other enemies. Until the drakon is taken care of, everyone else needs to focus on the enemy while Clarisse leads the assault on the drakon.”

“Keep them off Clarisse and keep them away from Olympus,” Silena said. “We can do that.”

“Weapons. Michael, Thalia,” Percy said, turning to the two archers.

Thalia shot him a thumbs up. “We’ve been rounding up arrows.”

“We’ll be okay,” Michael added. “Will, Lydia, and Magnus are on Olympus with the injured.” He didn’t say the dead were there too.

Annabeth breathed a sigh of relief. “Good. Okay.”

A roar shook the ground. It sounded very close.

“Out of time,” Percy said. “Get ready.”

A shadow blotted out the sun. Across the street, the drakon slithered down the side of a skyscraper. It roared, and a thousand windows shattered.

“Magnus would love this,” Percy muttered to Annabeth.

She snorted. “Come on, Seaweed Brain.”

The two-hundred-foot-long serpent was as thick as a school bus. It slithered down the side of a building, it’s yellow eyes like searchlights and its mouth full of razor-sharp teeth big enough to chew elephants.

Meanwhile, the enemy army advanced down Fifth Avenue. The campers had done their best to push cars out of the way to keep the mortals safe, but that just made it easier for their enemies to approach. The Party Ponies swished their tails nervously. Chiron galloped up and down their ranks, shouting encouragement to stand tough and think about victory and root beer, but Percy figured any second they would panic and run.

“Hold the line against the army!” Percy shouted. “Clarisse!”

Clarisse let out a war cry. “ARES!” she shouted.

“ARES!” her sibling echoed back. The followed Clarisse as she charged headfirst at the drakon.

As soon as the Ares kids broke away from the main group of campers, skeletal hands broke through the ground. Percy could see Nico in his black armor standing among them, black Stygian ice sword raised high. He hoped the kid had gotten around to taking that nap because Percy did not need Nico passing out on him.

The drakon was three stories up, but rapidly descending towards the Ares kids. Wherever it looked, centaurs froze in fear.

From the north, the enemy army crashed into the Party Ponies, and the Greek lines broke. The drakon lashed out, swallowing three Californian centaurs in one gulp before Clarisse or her siblings could even get close.

“I’m going to distract it,” Annabeth said, pulling out her Yankees hat. “It worked well enough before.”

“I thought we weren’t getting away from each other anymore?” Percy asked her. He whistled sharply. “Mrs. O’Leary, heel!”

"ROOOF!" The hellhound leaped over a line of centaurs and gave Percy a kiss that smelled suspiciously of pepperoni pizza.

Percy clambered up his dog’s back and held out a hand for Annabeth. “First class ticket to the drakon’s back, miss?”

Annabeth rolled her eyes and took his hand. “This is crazy.”

“Well, we need to get it down somehow,” Percy said. “Mrs. O’Leary, can you get us in the back of that drakon?”

Percy drew his sword and Annabeth drew her dagger as the hellhound leapt through the shadows. They emerged high up on the drakon’s back.

Annabeth slid off Mrs. O’Leary’s back and drove her dagger into a chink in the drakon’s armor.

The drakon roared and the pain combined with Mrs. O’Leary’s added weight was enough to send the drakon crashing to the ground.

A giant hawk swooped in to catch Annabeth and deposit her on the ground next to Percy and a dazed Mrs. O’Leary.

“Thanks, Alex!” Annabeth called as the hawk swooped away to dive bomb the back of the enemy lines.

Meanwhile, the Ares kids let out a rousing cheer as the drakon fell to the ground at their feet.

“YAAAH!” Sherman, Percy thought it was Sherman, yelled as he thrust a spear through one of the drakon’s eyes.

The rest of the battle wasn't going well. The centaurs had panicked under the onslaught of giants and demons. An occasional orange camp T-shirt appeared in the sea of fighting, but quickly disappeared. Flashes of white bones. Arrows screamed. Fire exploded in waves across both armies, but the action was moving across the street to the entrance of the Empire State Building. They were losing ground.

The only good thing happening was Alex’s attack on the back half of the army. It was enough of a distraction that the main force of campers wasn’t completely overwhelmed, but even that still wasn’t enough. The campers were forced to retreat to the doors of the Empire State Building as the enemy army surrounded them.

Percy and Annabeth were among the few demigods that would be completely cut off from the main group if they didn’t retreat.

“Back!” Silena yelled, voice shrill. “I said BACK!”

A dozen of the enemy turned around and ran into the drakon’s poisonous spray.

“We have to help, Clarisse!” Silena shouted to Percy and Annabeth. She moved to head towards the Ares campers.

“Silena!” Percy called. “Silena, NO!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Keeping you waiting with baited breath for two chapters to find out what happened to Silena? Sorry. I sometimes try to channel my inner Rick.
> 
> As for the chapter title for the last chapter, I'm still thinking about it, but I've gotten a few good ideas from people so thank you for that!


	23. Clarisse Levels Up (Percy)

SILENA DIDN’T LISTEN TO PERCY, instead attempting to fight her way to Clarisse. As if in slow motion, Percy saw the dracaenae lock eyes on Silena and move forward. Before he could warn her, the spear was jutting through Silena’s stomach.

“Silena!” Annabeth screamed. She ran at the dracaenae and vaporized the monster with her dagger.

Percy moved with her and they stood together against the monsters, protecting Silena.

Meanwhile, the children of Ares had given the drakon a mouthful of Celestial bronze javelins which couldn’t have tasted very good.

"EEESSSSS!!!!!" it screamed, which is probably drakon for  _ OWWWW! _

"Ares, to me!" Clarisse yelled. She attacked the drakon with gusto.

She and her siblings hacked at the chinks in the creature’s scales and dodged poison spray without batting an eye. Some of them threw javelins, most of which broke, but some lodged in the monster’s teeth. It snapped its jaws together until its mouth was a mess of green blood, yellow foamy poison, and splintered weapons. Some of it sprayed and hit a couple campers.

It was over then, Percy decided. If there was one thing Clarisse would not let live, it was a monster that felled her fellow campers.

“YOU WANT DEATH?” Clarisse shouted at the drakon. “WELL, COME ON!”

She leapt aside as the monster struck, pulverizing the ground in front of her. Then she jumped onto the creature’s head. As it reared up, she drove her electric spear into its good eye with so much force it shattered the shaft, releasing all the magic weapon’s power.

Electricity arced across the creature's head, causing its whole body to shudder. Clarisse jumped free, rolling safely to the sidewalk as smoke boiled from the drakon's mouth. The drakon's flesh dissolved, and it collapsed into a hollow scaly tunnel of armor.

Everyone stared at Clarisse in awe. The Party Ponies rallied at the doors of the Empire State Building, Clarisse’s success giving them new hope. The enemy army was momentarily thrown into confusion having not expected such a victory from the campers and not expecting to be thrown into such a precarious position. The remaining campers stood between them and Olympus while the Ares campers were mostly intermixed in the enemy lines.

Without a drakon to focus on, the Ares campers turned their full fury onto the enemy around them, sending the enemy army into complete chaos.

Clarisse fought her way to where Percy, Annabeth, and Silena were.

“Silena!” Clarisse shouted. She turned her eyes on Percy and Annabeth. “Get her back there!” she screamed, pointing towards the doors to the Empire State Building. “GO!” she yelled as she picked up a sword and charged back into the fray.

Percy and Annabeth carefully picked up Silena and started to move back towards the doors when the ground shook. They almost dropped Silena.

“Not me,” Percy said, casting a wary look around.

Cracks appeared in the road, the sidewalks, the sides of the buildings. Skeletal hands grasped the air as the dead clawed their way out of the ground. There were thousands of them, far more than Percy had ever seen Nico summon at one time. As they emerged, the Titan army started to back up. Even the campers back away, unsure of what to do.

“HOLD!” Nico’s voice called. He sounded way too alert for someone who had summoned a whole army of skeletons. “Campers, HOLD!” Percy caught sight of Nico who was grinning like a maniac. “Reinforcements are here!”

The sky turned dark and cold. Shadows thickened. A harsh war horn sounded, and as the dead soldiers formed up ranks with their guns and swords and spears, an enormous chariot roared down Fifth Avenue, cutting through the lines of monsters.

The horses were living shadows, fashioned from darkness. The chariot was inlaid with obsidian and gold, decorated with scenes of painful death. Holding the reins was Hades himself, Lord of the Dead, with Demeter and Persephone riding behind him.

“Oh my gods, Nico did it,” Silena murmured. She seemed out of it. Probably due to the spear sticking out of her stomach.

Percy fought a grin as he and Annabeth resumed movement and gently set Silena down outside the Empire State Building. Annabeth handed Percy a wadded up orange t-shirt that he didn’t really want to know who it was from.

“I’m going to take the spear out, but you need to press this against the wound to stanch the bleeding,” she said, voice quivering slightly. “On three?”

Silena gritted her teeth, but nodded. “Ready.”

“One,” Annabeth said. “Two.” She pulled the spear out.

Silena shouted and Percy pressed the shirt to the wound.

“Three,” Annabeth finished. She looked around. “We need ambrosia or nectar.”

“Are you kidding?” Silena gasped. “I’ll explode. We’ve all had way too much in the past few days for any of us to stomach much more.” She replaced Percy’s hands on the cloth with her own. “You two go. I’ll be fine here, but you can’t get a healer until the enemy is gone. Now go!”

“Don’t you dare die on us, Silena,” Percy said. “Don’t even think about it.”

Silena offered him a smile. “Promise. Don’t  _ you _ dare let Kronos win.”

“Promise,” Percy agreed.

By the time they returned to the fight, Hades was driving his chariot up and down the streets, vaporizing monsters and radiating fear. Demeter and Persephone were at his side, every so often a monster would suddenly disappear and leave a plant in its place.

The panicked centaurs weren’t panicked anymore and they were pushing the army back. The Hunters and Apollo kids launched volleys of silver moon arrows and regular arrows at the enemy. The Ares cabin slashed and hacked, which was their favorite thing. The monsters retreated toward 35th Street.

Clarisse for her part was leading the demigods. She bravely charged after the enemy, yelling insults and daring them to cross her. An aura or red fire flickered around her.

"The blessing of Ares," Thalia said. "I've never seen it in person before."

For the moment, Clarisse was as invincible as Percy was. The enemy threw spears and arrows, but nothing hit her.

"I AM CLARISSE, DRAKON-SLAYER!" she yelled. "I will kill you ALL! Where is Kronos? Bring him out! Is he a coward?"

"Clarisse!" Percy yelled. "Stop it. Withdraw!"

"What's the matter, Titan lord?" she yelled. "BRING IT ON!"

There was no answer from the enemy. Slowly, they began to fall back down the street and out of sight.

A hawk flew down and landed before Percy and Annabeth. It shifted into Alex. She brushed out her hair and looked at them.

“They’re retreating still,” Alex reported.

Annabeth looked relieved. “Good.”

“Percy! Annabeth!” Nico called, running over with a pale face. “It’s Silena. She’s not doing good. You need to get Magnus down here now.”

Alex cursed. “I’ll fly up and get him.”

“Can you drop me off on Olympus?” Nico asked quickly.

“You owe me like three trips through shadow travel,” Alex said.

“Deal,” Nico agreed.

Alex stepped back and the next second, a pegasus was in her place. Nico clambered on and they shot off into the sky.

“Come on,” Annabeth said, tugging his arm. “We need to make sure she stays alive.”

When they got to Silena, Beckendorf was with her, pressing the bloodstained shirt to her stomach.

“Silena!” Percy said. “Silena, Magnus is on his way right now. We just sent Alex to go get him. You’re going to be fine.”

Silena smiled weakly. “S’okay. Kind of… deserved it. Betrayed… camp.” Her eyelids fluttered.

“Silena, keep your eyes open,” Annabeth said forcefully. “Keep your eyes open, Silena. Look at Beckendorf. Look at me or Percy or anything. Just keep your eyes open.”

Silena opened her mouth to reply, but her eyes locked onto something behind Percy. He turned to see Hades, Persephone, and Demeter standing there.

“Do something!” Percy shouted. “You’re gods, you can save her!”

“Percy!” Annabeth hissed.

Percy glared at Hades. He probably would have done something that would have gotten him incinerated or turned into a flower had Magnus and Alex not dropped from the sky at that very moment.

Magnus hurried over and knelt by Silena. He reached for the bloodied shirt, but hesitated. “I have to ask, Silena. My healing… there’s always a chance I see into your mind with big things like this. Mostly memories.”

Silena took a shuddering breath. “S’fine. Do… do it.”

Magnus removed the shirt and placed his hands over the wound. A glow emanated from the wound and surrounded Magnus. It might have just been a trick of the light, but color flooded back into Silena’s face and her eyes brightened and sparkled again.

Silena gasped and sat up, the wound completely healed.

“Well lookit ‘at,” Magnus slurred, immediately flopping to the side. Alex caught his head before it could hit the pavement.

“Silena!” Beckendorf said, pulling his girlfriend close. Silena hugged him tightly.

“Lord Hades,” Annabeth said respectfully. “Lady Demeter, Lady Persephone. I… thank you. For helping us.”

Hades nodded his head. “I will admit that my son made a fair argument. And as much as I dislike certain demigods,” he looked directly at Percy when he said this, “it would not do for Olympus to fall. Where  _ is _ my son?”

“Olympus,” Percy said tightly.

Alex looked over. “He said something about someone dying. Um, I think it was one of Will’s siblings.”

Annabeth’s shoulder slumped. “Okay. Um, uh, we should have Katie and Miranda work with Demeter and Persephone.”

Demeter’s eyes lit up at this. “Oh, my girls! I should make sure they’re eating enough cereal.”

“Mother!” Persephone complained. She dragged Demeter off towards where Katie and Miranda must be.

“We should be prepared for Titans,” Percy said. “If Kronos knows we have three gods here, he might bring back up.”

Thalia nodded, eyes never leaving Hades for a second. If Percy was Thalia and Hades had been the one responsible for him spending years as a tree, he wouldn’t take his eyes off him either. “Hyperion and Iapetus obviously won’t be part of that. And Atlas is still stuck under the sky.”

“Kiros won’t be a problem,” Percy added.

Hades snapped his head to look at Percy. “And you would know that how?”

“Dream,” Percy said without missing a beat. “Which leaves Oceanus, but he’s fighting my father still, and Koios.”

“Koios is somewhat neutral,” Hades said. “He supports Kronos, but he will not fight.” He narrowed his eyes at Percy. “Do not mistake my help with friendship, Percy Jackson. The Underworld is big enough as it is. I don’t need any more of you demigods adding the Elysium’s population at once.” He turned to leave, but paused. “If you see my son, tell him I would speak with him.” Then he left.

Thalia snorted. “Nico has the father of the year. Anyway, my Hunters will stand guard. Annabeth and Percy, you should go to Olympus. Tell Nico his dad’s looking for him or whatever, and then set up the final defense.”

“Yeah,” Percy sighed. “I’m long overdue for a trip to Olympus.”

Thalia gave him a strange look, but said nothing as she turned to bark orders to the Hunters.

“What are you going to do?” Annabeth asked Percy.

“For one,” Percy said, “I need to get rid of that stupid pithos. Then, I need to have a talk with my dad. Hey,” he realized. “Rachel  _ was _ right about this ending in death. The god of death anyway. Hades showed up at the end to finish things.”

“Hades is the god of  _ the dead _ ,” Annabeth corrected. “Honestly, Percy, you’ve met Thanatos, haven’t you? But you’re right. Hades came to our aid. This is good.”

“Unless Kronos gets some other Titans to fight.”

“You heard what Hades said. Koios is neutral to a point. Plus, the female Titans are completely neutral. Theia, Rhea, Themis, Mnemosyne, Phoebe, Tethys… they won’t fight.” She squeezed Percy’s hand. “Come on. We’re going to finish what we started. The fight ends tomorrow. Happy early birthday, by the way.”

Percy sighed. “Happy birthday to me. A full invasion of my city is exactly what I wanted. How did you know?”

“I know you too well,” Annabeth said, kissing his cheek.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hades, Demeter, and Persephone are here earlier than before! And Silena lives! And Percy is finally going to take the pithos to Olympus.


	24. Will and Nico Underneath a Tree, T-A-L-K-I-N-G (Will)

THE DAY HAD NOT GONE the way Will wished it would have gone. He was supposed to save Alice. She wasn’t supposed to die. Not again.

When he saw Magnus yawning and fighting to stay awake, Will finally had to tell him to get some rest. It wasn’t like there was anything more he could be doing at the moment, and maybe, just maybe, Alice would be able to hold out long enough for Magnus to recharge. Even if Will knew that there was a very small chance of that happening.

He tried to pretend that he didn’t see the golden shroud covering a dead body. He tried so hard to pretend that there had been a mixup and that it wasn’t Alice under it. After that, he felt guilty for hoping that someone else had died instead.

Then Nico and Alex appeared in the middle of the makeshift infirmary on Olympus.

“I’m sorry,” Nico said quietly. “I asked Alex to bring me, but we need to get Magnus right now.”

Will sniffed and took a deep breath. “Right. Yeah. Um, he was over here. This way.”

_ I’m sorry _ , Nico had said.

That confirmed it. Unless Kayla or Austin or Michael had died in the onslaught. Will blinked rapidly as he led Alex and Nico to where Magnus was sleeping. With a jolt, Will realized Magnus was resting against the tree they had seen Alice by only hours earlier.

“Magnus!” Will said.

Magnus woke with a start and looked up at Will.

“You have to go,” he said, glancing back at Nico. Why Magnus had to go, he didn’t know, so he was hoping for some sort of an explanation from Nico.

Before Nico could even say a word, Magnus interrupted them. “What’s going on?” he asked, eyes darting to the side like he was looking for something that wasn’t there. “Is Annabeth okay? Is Alex okay?”

“She’s with me,” Nico said, pulling Alex over into Magnus’s eyesight. His expression was worried. “But you have to go now! Alex will fly you there.”

“What?” Magnus sputtered. “Why me?”

“It’s Silena,” Alex said. “She’s hurt.”

Will’s heart dropped to his feet. With everything going on with Alice, he’d forgotten about what happened to Silena.

_ “Silena’s dead,” Travis told Will. _

_ Connor looked away. “She pretended to be Clarisse to get the Ares cabin here. Lydian drakon can only be killed by a child of Ares, and she wasn’t.” _

_ Will swallowed. “Gods.” _

_ “Clarisse is beyond angry,” Travis shuddered. “She’s screaming for Kronos to come fight her. I don’t blame him for staying away. Clarisse’s eyes could kill right now.” _

“You should go,” Will said, pulling Magnus to his feet. “Save Silena.”

Before Magnus could protest or say another word, Alex had turned into a ginormous bird, gripped Magnus in her talons, and swooped off into the sky with Magnus screaming all kinds of profanities at her.

Nico and Will watched them soar down into the clouds and disappear into the streets below.

“I should have been here,” Nico said. “Alice… I’m really sorry, Will.”

Will sighed. “What are we doing, Nico? I mean, what have we done that has really changed anything for the better?”

“A lot,” Nico said. “We changed a lot. But this war could  _ not _ have been avoided. The prophecy had to come to pass.”

“That prophecy didn’t account for what we knew!” Will insisted. “We should have been able to do more. We  _ could _ have done something more.”

“If what we knew had anything to do with the prophecy, the prophecy would have changed,” Nico said. “But it didn’t. And we  _ did _ try. Percy and Annabeth gave Luke more chances than he deserved to change.” He took a breath. “Kronos will be back tonight. And tomorrow morning, he will die. This ends tomorrow.”

“It doesn’t end,” Will said miserably. “We’ve already done this once. And after this we still have so much to go through before we can even think about peace.”

Nico poked Will’s shoulder. “I’m supposed to be the pessimist. You’re the optimist.”

“Maybe I’ve been spending too much time with you. You’re negativity is rubbing off on me.”

“And I suppose you’ve given me your sunny optimism?”

“Sounds right.”

Nico snorted. “Just don’t expect me to wear bright colors.”

“I missed this,” Will admitted.

“What?”

Will gestured to Nico. “This. I don’t know. You did a lot of exploring this summer.”

“I was spying on the Titans and running missions for Chiron,” Nico said. “I barely did anything for me. I wouldn’t call that exploring.”

“Whatever you want to call it,” Will said. “I missed you.”

“I mean, I guess I missed you too,” Nico said casually, a small smile tugging at the corners of his mouth. “Dork.”

“If I’m a dork, then what does that make you?” Will shot back.

Nico shrugged. “Not a dork.”

They stood together for a while, staring up at Olympus.

“My dad came,” Nico said suddenly. “I don’t really know if that’s good or not. But he came.”

Will looked over at him. “That’s great. He came early.  _ You _ came early.”

“I yelled at him,” Nico admitted. “I probably could have gotten myself killed.” He cast a look in Will’s direction like he was gauging his reaction.

Will sighed. “Honestly, I’ve come to expect that by now.”

Nico grinned. “What can I say? Demigods live dangerous lives. Anyway, I… I used your advice. From that day on Half-Blood Hill. So really, you’re the one who convinced Hades to fight.”

“My advice?” Will repeated.

“You said I could have friends if I tried,” Nico said. “I told my father that he had to do something helpful if he wants to be respected. It was good advice.”

“I’m not as smart as Annabeth, but I do have my moments,” Will said.

They jumped as the elevator doors dinged open.

Percy, Annabeth, and Grover stepped out of the door. Percy was holding a long jar.

“What is that?” Will asked.

“Pandora’s box,” Percy sighed. “I’ve got to put this somewhere safe and I have to talk to my dad.”

Will was pretty sure the last place Percy wanted to be to talk to his dad was Olympus. The ocean was in the exact opposite direction from the floating paradise in the sky.

“This is it then?” Nico asked.

“Hopefully,” Annabeth said. “And, Nico? Your father is looking for you.”

Nico nodded resignedly. “I’ll head back down.” He looked at Will. “See you on the other side.” Then he headed into the elevator.

“Is Silena okay?” Will asked.

Annabeth nodded. “She’s fine. Magnus passed out, but Silena’s alive.”

Will gave them a genuine smile of relief. “Good. I’m glad. Uh, but you guys should hurry.”

Percy, Annabeth, and Grover waved goodbye and then set off for the throne room.

Everything was calm for a while until Thalia burst out of the elevator.

“They’re in the throne room,” Will called to her.

“Thanks!” she shouted. “Take cover! I don’t know if we can keep them from coming up!”

It was a flurry of activity as nymphs and dryads helped Will and Lydia drag the injured and dead campers and Hunters deeper into the parks and gardens they had set up in. They moved behind rows of trees and layers of bushes.

Will hurried to the guardrail and peered down at the city below to watch the battle unfold.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Almost there. We are almost to the final battle. Super close. We'll get there.
> 
> Anyway, I finished reading Paola Santiago and the River of Tears and decided that I would take this moment to recommend it if you haven't read it yet. It's one of the Rick Riordan Presents books and it's about the Mexican story of La Llorona, or Weeping Woman (translation) or Woman in White (another name for her that Supernatural fans will definitely be familiar with). Anyway, it was a really good story, and there's all the humor and chapter titles from the PJO books in there.


	25. A Much Needed Chat (Nico)

NICO WASN’T EXPECTING a heartfelt apology when he stepped out of the elevator and into the lobby of the Empire State Building. He didn’t really know what he was expecting.

But he made his way to the mostly empty corner Hades was standing in.

“Father,” Nico acknowledged.

“You convinced me to aid your fight to defend Olympus,” Hades said. “You yelled at me. Never before have I been so harassed by one of my sons.”

“Yeah, well, the world is in danger.”

“I could have blasted you to cinders,” Hades pointed out. “You risk that to convince me to aid these demigods.”

“Can you entertain the possibility that I acted for multiple reasons?” Nico asked, mouth twitching.

“What?” Hades frowned.

Nico shook his head. “Nothing, it’s nothing.”

Hades gazed at the groups of demigods huddled together sharpening weapons and talking to their friends and siblings. “You are happy here.”

It wasn’t a question. More like a statement, but Nico had a feeling his father expected an answer anyway.

“I am,” Nico admitted. “I have friends here. One of those multiple reasons,” he added.

Hades nodded slowly. “My children are so rarely happy. Perhaps, you will be the exception.”

They stood in awkward silence for a few minutes.

“Sorry about leaving after the battle,” Nico said. “I would have come over to thank you, but…”

“Apollo’s daughter,” Hades finished. “Alice?”

Nico opened his mouth to ask how Hades knew that, but then he closed it, realizing that the god probably felt the death, same as Nico had.

“Was she a… friend?” The words sounded strained and foreign coming from Hades’s mouth.

Nico shook his head. “Not really. I mean, she was nice, but I  _ am _ friends with Will Solace. He’s a son of Apollo, so Alice was his sister.”

Suddenly, Nico remembered something he hadn’t really had much time to think about lately.

“How is Bianca?” he asked.

Hades paused. “She was there the other day. Why do you ask?”

“ _ Do not despair, again she’ll reign / One shall be lost in the land without rain _ ,” Nico recited. “It was part of the prophecy from our quest. The one to save Artemis and Alex. It’s about Bianca, and I can’t help but think it means that she’ll come back to life. Is that possible?”

“Not unless the Olympian Council decides to grant her life,” Hades said sharply. “I must respect the laws of death, especially concerning my own children. I cannot bring her back unless I am given permission.” He looked Nico in the eyes. “Do not head down this path. It will only bring you pain and suffering. Allow events to unfold naturally.”

“Nico!” Kayla called rushing over. She faltered slightly when she noticed Hades. “Lord Hades. I didn’t mean to interrupt.”

“It’s fine,” Nico said before his father could reply. “Did you need something?”

Kayla glanced at Hades before turning her attention to Nico. “You were on Olympus just now, right? With Will, Lydia, and Alice? How are they? I’d go up to check myself, but…”

Nico froze. “Kayla, maybe you should wait until this is over.”

“Nico,” Kayla said, crossing her arms. “What’s wrong?”

It was probably the last thing Nico wanted to do at the moment. He couldn’t remember how Kayla had reacted to Alice’s death, but then again, Nico hadn’t been very close with the Apollo kids at the time.

Plus, the whole situation reminded him of his conversation with Percy.

_ “Hey! Where’s… where’s my sister?” _

Nico glanced at his father. “I have to go.” Turning back to Kayla, he said, “Come on.” He led her away from Hades because if she blew up, Nico really did not want an I-told-you-so from his father.

_ “Hey, Nico. Let’s take a walk, okay? We need to talk.” _

Kayla sank into a chair. “It’s bad?”

“Yeah,” Nico said quietly. “Alice was hit with a poison arrow. I… Kayla, I’m really sorry. I probably should have told you as soon as I felt her…” he trailed off.

“No, no,” Kayla shook her head. “No, it’s… I’m glad you didn’t. Um,” she took a shaky breath, “thank you. For telling me now though. And being there for Will,” she added. “I’m guessing that’s why you went up?”

“I know what it’s like to lose a sibling you wanted to save,” Nico said. “It sucks.”

A Hunter’s horn blew.

Nico and Kayla jumped to their feet.

“Kronos,” Nico growled. “Thalia! Percy, Annabeth, and Grover are still on Olympus!”

Thalia took off for the elevator.

Nico returned to Hades’s side. “I have a plan,” he told his father. “Idea, really. If you’re willing to do what a demigod says that is.”

Hades raised an eyebrow challengingly. “The idea?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this chapter kind of reminded me of one of the things that I don't like about Chiron. Now, I find his attempts to give pep talks humorous because, the centaur cannot give one to save his life. But the scene in Titan's Curse when Percy and the others come back from the quest and Percy realizes that everyone EXCEPT NICO knew about Bianca and they were all waiting for him, Percy, a fourteen year old, to come back and deliver the news to Nico a ten/eleven year old child.
> 
> If Chiron wasn't going to tell Nico himself, I think the task should have been given to one of the older campers. The college age ones that we know are there because it is mentioned in multiple books that there are kids anywhere from ten to college age. Silena and Beckendorf are two of the older campers I can name off the top of my head that were there that winter. Because, yeah, Chiron probably wasn't the best person to give this kind of a talk to Nico, but there were way better candidates than Percy.
> 
> Ahh, having those two flashback lines just reminded me about this.
> 
> On a more lighter note, I love Hades and Nico both using the "can you entertain for multiple reasons" thing, so I threw that in here.
> 
> Anyway, this chapter and the next chapter are both pretty short, so I figured I'd just upload them both.


	26. Percy Almost Sets Himself on Fire (Annabeth)

MARCHING TOWARDS THE THRONE ROOM OF OLYMPUS, Annabeth was trying not to focus too much on what was about to happen.

They had made a brief stop for Grover to plant Leneus’s laurel sapling in the gardens and for Percy to tell Pollux something. The son of Dionysus had a broken arm while his brother Castor was out with a concussion at least from what Annabeth could tell.

“Well,” Grover said as they paused outside the palace. “Sure good to be together again.”

“Almost dying,” Annabeth added.

“Abject terror,” Percy said. “Nice knowing you guys.”

Grover looked at Annabeth as Percy trasped into the palace. “I… I can’t tell if he was kidding.”

“For his sake, I hope he’s kidding,” she muttered.

Annabeth didn’t like the mood of Olympus. It was utterly depressing at the moment. No fires lit the braziers. The windows were dark. The streets were deserted and the doors were barred. The only activity had been the field hospitals Will and Lydia set up in the parks.

As they walked through the empty palace towards the throne room, their footsteps echoed on the marble floor. The constellations twinkled coldly on the ceiling of the great hall. The hearth was down to a dull red glow. Hestia, in the form of a little girl in brown robes, hunched at its edge, shivering. The Ophiotaurus swam sadly in his sphere of water. He let out a half-hearted moo when he saw Percy. In the firelight, the thrones cast evil-looking shadows, like grasping hands.

“Lady Hestia,” Percy called.

"Hello, Percy Jackson," the goddess murmured. "Getting colder. Harder to keep the fire going."

"I know," Percy said. "The Titans are near."

“Percy Jackson and Annabeth Chase,” Hestia said. “You have a decision to make. It approaches rapidly. Are you prepared?”

Annabeth flinched back. She knew what decision Hestia spoke about. It had been haunting her ever since the beginning of this disaster. Four words. She could say them, or she could keep them inside.

What scared her the most was that she didn’t know if she wanted to say them. Annabeth knew that it would probably be necessary, but just because it was necessary didn’t mean she wanted to do it.

Percy held out Pandora’s jar. "Hestia," he said, "I give this to you as an offering."

The goddess tilted her head. "I am the least of the gods. Why would you trust me with this?"

"You're the last Olympian," Percy said. "And the most important."

"And why is that, Percy Jackson?"

"Because Hope survives best at the hearth," Percy said. "Guard it for me, and I won't be tempted to give up again."

The goddess smiled. She took the jar in her hands and it began to glow. The hearth fire burned a little brighter. "Well done, Percy Jackson," she said. "May the gods bless you."

“I wouldn’t hold my breath,” Percy muttered. “Come on, guys,” he said louder, marching over to the throne of Poseidon.

The seat of Poseidon stood just to the right of Zeus's, but it wasn't nearly as grand. The molded black leather seat was attached to a swivel pedestal, with a couple of iron rings on the side for fastening a fishing pole. Or a trident, Annabeth supposed. It would probably depend on what Poseidon chose to put his symbol of power in the form of.

“Help me up,” Percy told Annabeth and Grover.

Grover shot him a look. “Are you crazy? Percy, the gods really don’t appreciate people sitting in their thrones. I mean like turn-you-into-a-pile-of-ashes don’t appreciate it.”

“One,” Percy said, “I am crazy. Two, I need to get his attention. It’s the only way.”

Annabeth knew this was coming. She had pretty much already resigned herself to this.

"Well," she said, "this'll get his attention."

Grover and Annabeth linked their arms to make a step, then boosted Percy onto the throne. They stepped back and watched Percy carefully.

Percy immediately turned pale as the throne rumbled briefly. After it stopped, a small bit of color returned to his face, but Percy was still too pale to not be alarmed.

"I'm sorry, Father," Percy said. "I needed to get your attention."

Right. Annabeth could only hear the Percy portion of the conversation. It was slightly unnerving, not knowing what Poseidon was saying.

"I'm sorry," Percy said again. "Listen, things are rough up here." He recounted what had happened in the battle already and then told Poseidon his plan.

Hearing it the second time, Annabeth wasn’t as concerned with the effectiveness of the plan. It was a decently sound plan, and it  _ would _ work.

"Dad, Kronos sent an army against you on purpose. He wants to divide you from the other gods because he knows you could tip the scales."

Pause.

"I'm at your home," Percy said. "Olympus."

The floor shook and steam started to evaporate off Percy. Next to Annabeth, Grover made a small noise of surprise and worry.

"Is Tyson okay?" Percy asked. A smile graced his lips. "You let him fight?" He sighed dramatically. "And Olympus might be saved."

By now, more steam was coming from Percy. Annabeth fought the urge to yank her boyfriend off the throne.

"Dad—"

Pause.

"I am praying. I'm talking to you, right?"

Percy toppled off the throne seconds later.

Grover studied him nervously. "Are you okay? You turned pale and… you started smoking."

“Did I?” Percy murmured. He patted his steaming clothes.

“Now that you’ve avoided spontaneous combustion,” Annabeth said, “we need to get back.”

Just then the doors of the throne room swung open. Thalia marched in.

"You've got to get down there," she told them. "The enemy is advancing. And Kronos is leading them."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And now the final battle is about to begin!


	27. Five Feet of Intimidation (Percy)

BY THE TIME THEY GOT to the street, it was too late. Campers and Hunters lay wounded on the ground. Clarisse must've lost a fight with a Hyperborean giant, because she was frozen in a block of ice. The centaurs were nowhere to be seen. Either they'd panicked and ran or they'd been disintegrated.

The Titan army ringed the building, standing maybe twenty feet from the doors. Kronos's vanguard was in the lead: Ethan Nakamura, the dracaena queen in her green armor, and two Hyperboreans.

Prometheus wasn’t there. He’d probably turned tail and ran as soon as Hades, Demeter, and Persephone turned up to fight. Honestly, Percy was kind of impressed that Kronos still had the guts to show up to face two of his kids and one of his granddaughters.

Then he started to think about how messed up the Greek family tree was and those weren’t exactly comforting battle thoughts.

Speaking of the three gods, where  _ were _ they?

“Chiron,” Annabeth said, voice trembling.

Chiron had an arrow notched, aimed straight at Kronos’s face.

As soon as Kronos saw Percy, his gold eyes flared. Then the Titan turned his attention back to Chiron. “Step aside, little son.”

As soon as Kronos saw Percy, his gold eyes flared. He proceeded to remind Percy that he had the annoying ability to slow down time and freeze people in their spots. Then the Titan turned his attention back to Chiron. “Step aside, little son.”

“I’m afraid not,” Chiron said calmly.

Percy strained against the time freeze, but it was no use. He was stuck along with the other demigods. Although, it was a good thing the time freeze didn’t extend to their voices.

“Chiron!” Annabeth said. “Look out!”

The dracaena queen became impatient and charged. Chiron's arrow flew straight between her eyes and she vaporized on the spot, her empty armor clattering to the asphalt. Chiron reached for another arrow, but his quiver was empty. He dropped the bow and drew his sword.

Kronos chuckled. He advanced a step, and Chiron's horse-half skittered nervously. His tail flicked back and forth.

"You're a teacher," Kronos sneered. "Not a hero."

"Luke was a hero," Chiron said. "He was a good one, until you corrupted him."

"FOOL!" Kronos's voice shook the city. "You filled his head with empty promises. You said the gods cared about me!"

"Me," Chiron noticed. "You said me."

It was a good strategy on Chiron’s part. Mostly. But Percy wanted to yell at the centaur that they didn’t have time for trivial games like this. Then, as Chiron attacked Kronos, Percy wanted to shout that it was still Luke who was a master swordsman and could beat Chiron hands down.

Two things happened. First, Kronos knocked aside Chiron's blade and yelled, "BACK!"

A blinding white light exploded between the Titan and the centaur. Chiron flew into the side of the building with such force the wall crumbled and collapsed on top of him.

"No!" Annabeth wailed.

At the same time, Nico cupped his hands around his mouth and shouted, “NOW!”

The freezing spell broke and they hurried over to where Chiron had been sent flying, but there was no sign of him.

Annabeth didn’t attack Kronos this time, but Percy could see her quivering. Tears shined in her eyes and her fist clenched at her sides.

Meanwhile, the enemy forces stirred uneasily as a cold chill settled over them. Suddenly, thousands of skeletons appeared off to one side. Vines and flowering plants crept up from the ground around the ankles of the troop’s other side.

“What is the meaning of this?” Kronos growled.

Nico stepped forward. “Well, come on. Didn’t you think it was kind of suspicious when you didn’t see any of the three gods that supposedly came to our aid?” he shot Kronos a cocky smile.

The sight was almost funny. Nico had worn black armor and a skull-shaped helmet last time, but here he was now in all his five foot, thirteen year old glory wearing nothing but a black shirt and black pants underneath a standard Camp Half-Blood breastplate. There was a pretty wicked looking sword sheathed at his side though.

"Son of Hades." Kronos spit on the ground. "Do you love death so much you wish to experience it?"

"Your death," Nico said, "would be great for me."

"I'm immortal, you fool! I have escaped Tartarus. You have no business here, and no chance to live."

Nico drew his sword—three feet of wicked sharp Stygian iron, black as a nightmare. Easily the most intimidating thing about him. "I don't agree. Besides, who cares about you escaping Tartarus? Regular monsters do it all the time. You’re not special."

Kronos trembled with rage, although that might have been something to do with the ground shaking as skeletons poured out of the ground in Hades’s wake as he walked towards Kronos. He was given a wide berth by the Titan’s monsters who were jumpy from all the dead soldiers.

"HOLD YOUR GROUND!" Kronos demanded. "The dead are no match for us." Only Kronos's power and authority kept his ranks from fleeing.

Hades smiled coldly. "Hello, Father. You're looking… young."

"Hades," Kronos growled. "You fight for the Olympians who do not welcome you."

“My son here explained rather passionately about why I should join the fight,” Hades said. “And I have to agree that it would not do for Olympus to fall. I would miss bickering with my siblings. And if there is one thing we can agree on—it is that you were a TERRIBLE father."

"True," muttered Demeter. "No appreciation of agriculture."

"Mother!" Persephone complained.

Hades drew his sword, a double-edged Stygian blade etched with silver. "Now fight me! For today the House of Hades will be called the saviors of Olympus."

"I don't have time for this," Kronos snarled.

He struck the ground with his scythe. A crack spread in both directions, circling the Empire State Building. A wall of force shimmered along the fissure line, separating Kronos's vanguard, and Percy, his friends, and a few other demigods from the bulk of the two armies.

Thalia stared at the wall. “He’s sealed us in,” she said. “He’s collapsing the magic barriers around Manhattan—cutting off just the building, and us."

Sure enough, outside the barrier, car engines revved to life. Pedestrians woke up and stared uncomprehendingly at the monsters and zombies all around them. No telling what they saw through the Mist, but it was probably plenty scary. Car doors opened.

Hades charged at the wall of force either because he was trying to get to Kronos or he was showing parental concern for Nico who was trapped inside the wall. He bounced off it and rolled back a few feet, knocking down monsters like bowling pins. He got to his feet, cursing, and blasted the wall with black energy. The barrier held.

"ATTACK!" Hades roared.

The armies of the dead clashed with the Titan's monsters. Fifth Avenue exploded into absolute chaos. Mortals screamed and ran for cover. Demeter waved her hand and an entire column of giants turned into a wheat field. Persephone changed the dracaenae's spears into sunflowers.

Nico and Magnus swung at the barrier with their swords. Nico’s Stygian ice sword sent sparks of the same black energy Hades tried to use. Jack on the other hand decided that the best course of action was to sing "I Want to Break Free" by Queen while Magnus struck at the wall.

Percy doubted the singing did much to help, but he had to give the sword credit for picking an appropriate song for the situation.

"Nakamura," Kronos said. "Attend me. Giants—deal with them." He pointed at Percy and his friends. Then he ducked into the lobby.

Percy didn’t even wait. He ran at a Hyperborean giant and rolled between the giant’s legs. Coming up, he stabbed Riptide into the giant’s backside. He shattered into a pile of ice shards. The second giant breathed frost at Annabeth, who dove out of the way. Thalia sprinted up the giant’s back like a gazelle (a dangerous and violent gazelle), sliced her hunting knives across his monstrous blue neck, and created the world’s largest headless ice sculpture.

On the other side of the wall, Katie Gardner turned her attention onto those of them trapped inside the wall.

“Go!” she yelled. “We’ll be fine, but you guys are no use to us if you’re stuck in there. Get Kronos!”

“This is  _ not _ how I wanted today to play out,” Nico grumbled. “You guys go. I can still summon skeletons on the other side.”

Annabeth pulled at Percy’s arm. “Come on, Seaweed Brain!”

If Percy didn’t know what was coming, he probably wouldn’t have noticed the slight tremble in her voice.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's not completely obvious from just this last section, but the ones inside the barrier are Percy, Annabeth, Thalia, Grover, Nico, and Magnus. Alex is elsewhere and since Nico was already there with the campers, he was within the range of the barrier when Kronos shrank it around the Empire State Building. I do explain who got stuck inside in the beginning of the next chapter, but since that isn't up as of this note, I thought I'd point this out to you guys.
> 
> Given that Jack usually picks like top 40 pop songs, it's probably unlikely that he'd pick a Queen song, but given the situation they're in, "I Want to Break Free" was just too perfect to not use and also, it's Queen and their songs are amazing. Good. Music.
> 
> Riordan Wiki says Nico is 5 foot 6 inches post-Blood of Olympus, so I'm estimating him at around 5 foot in Last Olympian, hence the chapter title. I don't know if his height is mentioned in TLO, so it's just my guess.


	28. Who Thought it Was a Good Idea to Put Alex Incharge of the Pep Talks? (Alex)

GENERALLY SPEAKING, ALEX didn’t really like it when people tried to control her. So she didn’t exactly take too kindly to Kronos time freezing them all in place. Thankfully, it didn’t last long.

Unfortunately, Kronos sent Chiron flying through the air into a pile of rubble before he took down the spell.

It wasn’t too long after that that Hades, Demeter, and Persephone revealed themselves in the forms of an army of skeletons clawing their way up between the Titan army’s ranks and vines and flowers twisting their way around the enemies legs.

“What is the meaning of this?” Kronos growled.

Nico stepped forward. “Well, come on. Didn’t you think it was kind of suspicious when you didn’t see any of the three gods that supposedly came to our aid?” he shot Kronos a cocky smile.

"Son of Hades." Kronos spit on the ground. "Do you love death so much you wish to experience it?"

"Your death," Nico said, "would be great for me."

"I'm immortal, you fool! I have escaped Tartarus. You have no business here, and no chance to live."

Nico drew his sword—three feet of wicked sharp Stygian iron, black as a nightmare. "I don't agree. Besides, who cares about you escaping Tartarus? Regular monsters do it all the time. You’re not special."

Alex’s eyes widened and she had to fight hard to stop the loud ‘ohhhh’ from escaping her mouth.

Kronos trembled with rage, although that might have been something to do with the ground shaking as skeletons poured out of the ground in Hades’s wake as he walked towards Kronos. He was given a wide berth by the Titan’s monsters who were jumpy from all the dead soldiers.

"HOLD YOUR GROUND!" Kronos demanded. "The dead are no match for us." Only Kronos's power and authority kept his ranks from fleeing.

Hades smiled coldly. "Hello, Father. You're looking… young."

"Hades," Kronos growled. "You fight for the Olympians who do not welcome you."

“My son here explained rather passionately about why I should join the fight,” Hades said. “And I have to agree that it would not do for Olympus to fall. I would miss bickering with my siblings. And if there is one thing we can agree on—it is that you were a TERRIBLE father."

"True," muttered Demeter. "No appreciation of agriculture."

"Mother!" Persephone complained.

Hades drew his sword, a double-edged Stygian blade etched with silver. "Now fight me! For today the House of Hades will be called the saviors of Olympus."

"I don't have time for this," Kronos snarled.

He struck the ground with his scythe. A crack spread in both directions, circling the Empire State Building. A wall of force shimmered along the fissure line, separating Kronos's vanguard, Percy, Annabeth, Thalia, Grover, Nico, and Magnus from the bulk of the two armies.

Alex’s head whipped around to face the glowing wall. But the sudden noise coming from behind her captured her attention.

Outside the barrier, car engines revved to life. Pedestrians woke up and stared uncomprehendingly at the monsters and zombies all around them. Alex had no idea what they might be seeing or how the Mist or glamour or whatever was covering this up, but whatever the mortals were seeing was apparently terrifying.

Hades charged at the wall. He bounced off it and rolled back a few feet, knocking down monsters like bowling pins. He got to his feet, cursing, and blasted the wall with black energy. The barrier held.

"ATTACK!" Hades roared.

The armies of the dead clashed with the Titan's monsters. Fifth Avenue exploded into absolute chaos. Mortals screamed and ran for cover. Demeter waved her hand and an entire column of giants turned into a wheat field. Persephone changed the dracaenae's spears into sunflowers.

Alex cursed. She wasn’t going to be able to get through the barrier. Whatever was going to happen with Kronos now would have to happen without her. She morphed into a large elephant and sent a Hyperborean giant crashing to the ground, flattening a dozen dracaenae. Hades’s skeletons went to work stabbing the giant which turned into ice and shattered.

She returned to human form and heard a sharp intake of breath behind her. Alex spun around to see a girl staring at her in awe and fear.

“Allegra Nakamura?” Alex asked. “I recognize you from the Labyrinth last year.”

Allegra held up her sword. Her hands were shaking. “I remember you. You appeared with that hellhound. What do you want from me?”

“I want you to know that it’s not too late to change sides,” Alex said. “Annabeth told me what you said. You’re only here because of Ethan. But it won’t matter what happens to Ethan if Kronos wins. You must know that.”

Allegra shook her head. “No. Ethan said that Kronos promised a better life for us and better treatment for our parents.”

“Of course Kronos would say that!” Alex snapped. “He wanted you two to join him. But that won’t happen. Kronos doesn’t care who or what he destroys as long as he defeats the gods. All gods including whoever your mom is. If Olympus is destroyed, the Olympians will fade away, but so will the minor gods and goddesses.”

“No,” Allegra said. “You’re lying. Ethan would never agree to that. He said that his mom told him he would bring respect to the minor gods.”

“Even if Kronos lets the minor gods live, they won’t be respected by mortals or anyone who’s left,” Alex said. “They’ll be feared. I don’t think that’s what your mother would want.”

“You don’t even know who my mother is,” Allegra said.

“So tell me,” Alex urged her. “Who’s your mother, Allegra?”

“Iris,” Allegra blurted out. “My mom is Iris.”

_ Iris _ . Alex was honestly blanking on who that was. Not that she would tell Allegra that.

“And you think that Iris would appreciate you supporting Kronos taking over?” Alex asked. “I know Janus and Morpheus and Hecate are supporting the Titans, but I didn’t hear anything about Iris supporting them.”

“What about you?” Allegra said, either intentionally changing the topic or just being curious. “Who’s your godly parent? What would they think about you fighting for the Olympians?”

Alex grimaced. “My mom doesn’t matter. We don’t have a good relationship. I’m not fighting for the Olympians out of loyalty to them. I don’t really care about them. The people I  _ do _ care about are my friends at Camp Half-Blood. So I fight for them.”

“So why shouldn’t I help my cousin?” Allegra challenged.

_ Almighty Thor, please give me strength _ , Alex groaned.  _ This is why no one should pick me to give the heart-to-hearts _ .

She took a deep breath and squared herself. “Look, Allegra. My friends all think that you and your cousin can be saved and have a change of heart or whatever. Most of them would be way better at this than me, but they are all stuck on the other side of that wall. So it’s just me.” Alex paused, trying to think of what to say. “I can’t make you do what you don’t want to do, but you don’t even  _ know _ how amazing Camp Half-Blood is.”

“If your mom or dad is an Olympian,” Allegra cut in.

“Laurel and Holly Victor,” Alex said quickly. “Their mom is Nike. The Ares cabin is always up for a challenge in the arena against them. Nico di Angelo. His dad is Hades. My friend Magnus. He’s unclaimed. I’m unclaimed too. I didn’t expect to be very welcomed at Camp Half-Blood either, but I found a home there.”

Actually, Alex didn’t expect to be welcomed because she was so sure her Norse demigodness gave off very strong danger vibes to the Greek demigods much like how Camp Half-blood at first had Alex’s internal radar screaming at her to get out.

But the sentiment was still the same.

“I don’t know what Annabeth and the others told you about me in the Labyrinth,” Alex began. “I stayed at Camp Half-Blood to get away from my mortal family. My father resents me for being born and pretty much just being me. My mother is…  _ he _ is fluid. So am I. I am transgender and gender fluid. My father didn’t appreciate that, so I left. Long story short, I was kidnapped by Luke and rescued by Artemis and my friends, then I was brought to Camp. I chose to stay. And for the most part, I was welcomed with open arms.”

“For the most part?”

Alex suppressed the urge to throttle the girl. Of everything she had said in that whole speech, it was the one negative part she chose to focus on?

“Well, I don’t know if you noticed, but we’re in the middle of a war and Kronos had a spy in our Camp,” Alex said sarcastically. “I was one of the rare unclaimed demigods that stayed at Camp.”

“So they didn’t trust you because your parent wasn’t an Olympian,” Allegra reasoned.

“No,” Alex snapped. “They didn’t trust me because in war, sometimes you have to be wary.” She closed her eyes and sighed. “Allegra, I told you that because until the day I came to Camp Half-Blood, was the first time in my life that I felt like I had a place.”

That was partially true. Technically, she wasn’t alive at Hotel Valhalla, so that wasn’t part of her  _ life _ . There was her abuelo’s house, but by the gods Alex was trying to make a point to an extremely stubborn Allegra.

“It could be home for you too,” Alex said. “You just have to give it a chance.”

“I…” Allegra blanched. “Ethan!” she shrieked, staring up at the sky.

Alex turned around to see a dark shape falling through the clouds. She groaned. “I’m going to have to start charging for rides,” she muttered.

She started running down the street, dodging and jumping over enemies. As she ran, pegasus wings sprouted from her back and then she wasn’t running anymore, she was galloping over enemy demigods and monsters alike.

Alex took to the sky and soared towards the falling shape that was coming closer and closer. She caught sight of a black eyepatch. Yep, definitely Ethan Nakamura.

_ I better not regret this _ , Alex thought as she swooped under Ethan, bracing herself for a harsh impact.

Ethan smashed into her back with the force of someone falling from the sky who had probably achieved terminal velocity. He cried out and wrapped his arms desperately around Alex’s neck.

_ Oh, yeah _ , Alex grumbled.  _ I just caught you on my back as a pegasus in mid-air and I definitely have a few broken ribs now, but please, moan about being saved. You’re welcome _ .

Alex touched down in the last place she had seen Allegra. The daughter of Iris was still there and she stared at Alex in awe. She pulled Ethan off Alex, and Alex instantly collapsed to the ground as a human.

“Ethan!” Allegra shouted. “Ethan!”

Ethan groaned and blinked slowly.  _ Or was it winking? _ Alex wondered.

“Tried to stop him,” Ethan gasped. “His skin… I couldn’t hurt him.”

_ His skin _ …

Alex sat up, head swimming. “You tried to hurt Percy?”

Ethan was silent. “Not Percy,” he said finally. “Kronos.”

Alex sat back in surprise. “Huh. Well what do you know? They  _ were _ right about you guys.”

“You tried to kill Kronos?” Allegra asked in a high pitched voice. “Ethan, what were you thinking? He’s going to  _ destroy _ you now.”

Ethan shook his head. “Kronos isn’t balance. Our parents deserve better, but not this way. Not through destruction.” He looked at Alex. “Your friends can stop him. I know that.”

“Yeah.” Alex stared up at Olympus. “I just wish I could be there to say goodbye to Percy. The prophecy-”

“Oh gods,” Ethan said, staring at something behind Alex.

Alex turned. A huge column of storm was approaching them. More accurately, it was approaching Olympus. What looked like glowing chariots were circling it. Lightning flashed, arrows of gold and silver streaked into the storm.  _ Typhon _ .

A cold shiver ran up Alex’s spine as she finally saw Typhon’s face. If was constantly changing into a different monster, each one more horrible than the last.

Allegra whimpered and squeezed Ethan’s arm. “Ethan, what do we do?”

A blast hit the monster and the resounding  _ BOOM _ reverberated through Alex’s body. Though, it didn’t do much to stop Typhon. He stumbled, but kept moving forward.

Alex struggled to her feet. “Move as far as you can away from Olympus,” she ordered Ethan and Allegra. “Typhon wants to destroy it, but he might leave the rest of the city alone.”

“What about you?” Allegra asked.

“I’m going to help the gods apparently,” Alex said, staring at the flashes of light.

Ethan grabbed her arm. “No way. You’ll die.”

_ You’ll die in a Greek battle _ , a little voice inside Alex’s head added.  _ You’ll die in a Greek battle at the age of fourteen with no Valkyrie to fly you to Valhalla. At best you’ll end up in the Greek afterlife by accident. At worst, it’ll be Helheim. Are you willing to risk that for a bunch of gods that aren’t yours and a bunch of demigods that aren’t Norse? _

The answer was obvious. Scary, but obvious. _I can't let the Titan's destroy Camp Half-Blood which is what they will certainly do after they destroy Olympus. It's my home now. The people there are my family. Typhon is heading for Olympus. Olympus where Magnus and Annabeth and Percy are right now. Yes, I am willing to risk it all for them_.

Alex stood straighter. “It’s definitely cliche, but someone has to do  _ something _ .”

“That’s so cliche,” Allegra said. “Don’t, Alex. The gods can’t even stop him.”

Before Alex could come up with a response, a conch horn sounded. All around Typhon, the Hudson River erupted, churning with forty-foot waves. Out of the water burst a new chariot—this one pulled by massive water horses (hippocampi, according to Percy) who swam through the air. Poseidon stood in the chariot wielding a trident. As he swung his trident, the river responded, making a funnel cloud around the monster.

"NOW, MY BRETHREN!" Poseidon's voice bellowed. "STRIKE FOR OLYMPUS!"

Warriors burst out of the river, riding the waves on huge sharks and dragons and seahorses. It was incredible, and if Alex hadn’t been there to see it herself, she would have hardly believed it happened.

The Cyclopes held huge lengths of black iron chains—big enough to anchor a battleship—with grappling hooks at the ends. They swung them like lassos and began to ensnare Typhon, throwing lines around the creature's legs and arms, using the tide to keep circling, slowly tangling him.

Typhon shook and roared and yanked at the chains, pulling some of the Cyclopes off their mounts; but there were too many chains. The sheer weight of the Cyclops battalion began to weigh Typhon down.

Poseidon threw his trident and impaled the monster in the throat. Golden blood, immortal ichor, spewed from the wound, making a waterfall taller than a skyscraper. The trident flew back to Poseidon's hand.

The other gods struck with renewed force. A red blur stabbed Typhon in the nose. Silver arrows sprouted from one of his eyes. Golden arrows set fire to the monster’s loincloth. Lightning bolt after lightning bolt struck the giant. Finally, the water rose, wrapping Typhon like a cocoon, and he began to sink under the weight of the chains.

Typhon bellowed in agony, thrashing with such force that waves sloshed the Jersey shore, soaking five-story buildings and splashing over the George Washington Bridge. And then the giant disappeared beneath the waves.

“Thank the gods,” Allegra said breathlessly. “Literally.”

Said gods appeared at the edge of the wall preventing anyone from getting to the Empire State Building. Alex watched as they quickly destroyed it and then disappeared, probably heading to Olympus where the fight with Kronos was underway.

“I’m going up there,” Alex said.

Allegra nodded. “We’re coming with you.”

“We are?” Ethan asked apprehensively. Alex kind of understood that. The kid had just been tossed off the mountain.

“Alex can’t go alone,” Allegra insisted. “Come on!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> See... I had no idea how very Flash referencey this was going to get, but like Allegra was the name on my mind when I named Ethan's cousin, so I named her Allegra and then I decided to make her mom Iris, but then... ya know... like I realized that Allegra is in fact a character from the Flash alongside another character named Iris. Soo... it wasn't intentional, but there ya go.
> 
> And yeah, I saved Ethan. Alex really does need to start charging for those rides.
> 
> On a completely unrelated note, my first day of school was today and it sucked. I hate online classes. No motivation to do anything. It's all on me to make sure I get my stuff done on time. But I am going to try and get through this. I just need to make a schedule and stick to that and hopefully everything will be fine. Good luck to everyone going back to school. If you're going back for in person learning, stay safe.


	29. Percy Rates the Olympus Experience (Percy)

IF PERCY HAD TO RATE the Olympus experience, he would give it a solid two star review. The only times he’d been there, the gods had debated whether or not to kill him, Kronos tried to kill him, Athena threatened him if he tried to get too close to Annabeth, and, of course, there was that one time his own father said he wished Percy had never been born.

So two stars was actually a little generous, but he had to give one star for Hestia because she definitely deserved a gold star, and the other star was for the architecture which he had grown to appreciate since starting to date Annabeth.

Now here he was, running off to fight Kronos atop Mount Olympus. Again.

They barely made it across the sky bridge before it disintegrated. It was times like these when Percy really had to appreciate Jason. The guy would have been really useful in that situation.

“Great,” Thalia grumbled, looking back at the elevator doors just hanging in space six hundred stories above Manhattan.

“I hope you guys have a plan to get back down,” Magnus said.

"Blah-ha-ha!" Grover said. "The connection between Olympus and America is dissolving. If it fails—"

"The gods won't move on to another country this time," Thalia said. "This will be the end of Olympus. The final end."

“Yeah, let’s make sure that doesn’t happen,” Percy said.

They ran through the streets. Mansions were burning. Statues had been hacked down. Trees in the parks were blasted to splinters. It looks like someone had attacked the city with a giant weedwacker.

“Kronos’s scythe,” Percy said.

“Yeah,” Thalia agreed. “Looks like it.”

“No, actually, I was cursing, but, yeah, it was probably his scythe that did this.”

Thalia gave him a weird look. “Kronos’s scythe is a curse?”

“Nico came up with it,” Percy explained.

They followed the winding path towards the palace of the gods. The whole mountaintop was in ruins—so many beautiful buildings and gardens gone.

A few minor gods and nature spirits had tried to stop Kronos. What remained of them was strewn about the road: shattered armor, ripped clothing, swords and spears broken in half. Percy really hoped they were okay.

Somewhere ahead of them, Kronos's voice roared: "Brick by brick! That was my promise. Tear it down BRICK BY BRICK!"

“Drama queen,” Magnus muttered.

As if in response to Magnus’s remark, a white marble temple with a gold dome suddenly exploded. The dome shot up like the lid of a teapot and shattered into a billion pieces, raining rubble over the city.

"That was a shrine to Artemis," Thalia grumbled. "He'll pay for that."

They were running under the marble archway with the huge statues of Zeus and Hera when the entire mountain groaned, rocking sideways like a boat in a storm.

"Look out!" Grover yelped.

The archway crumbled. Percy looked up in time to see a twenty-ton scowling Hera topple over on them. Thalia shoved Percy and Annabeth as a shower of dust rained down on them.

“Thalia!” Grover cried.

“Hola, señores and señoritas!” Jack shouted, flying out of the dust.

“The Hades?” Thalia yelped.

Magnus gave them a sarcastic grin. “You’re welcome.” To Jack, he said, “I’m not touching you until my life is no longer in danger. So don’t do anything that could get me killed.”

“I’m sorry, since when does your sword talk?” Thalia demanded.

“Since always,” Magnus said. “And his name is Jack.”

“Of course it is,” she muttered.

Annabeth kicked the pile of dust. “Stupid Hera.”

“Stupid Hera,” Percy agreed.

Thalia glared at them. “Don’t just stand there! Let’s go!”

Percy could hear Kronos laughing as the Titan approached the hall of the gods. More buildings exploded. A fireball erupted on the side of the mountain, right near the gates of the palace.

"We've got to run," Percy said.

"I don't suppose you mean away," Grover murmured hopefully.

“Why would we do the sensible thing and run away from danger when we could run towards danger?” Magnus muttered.

Percy sprinted towards the palace, Annabeth right next to him.

"I was afraid of that," Grover sighed, and clip-clopped after them.

The doors of the palace were big enough to steer a cruise ship through, but they'd been ripped off their hinges and smashed like they weighed nothing. The demigods had to climb over a huge pile of broken stone and twisted metal to get inside.

Kronos stood in the middle of the throne room, his arms wide, staring at the starry ceiling as if taking it all in. His laughter echoed loudly, sending chills down Percy’s spine. The first time he’d heard that laughter it had come from the pit of Tartarus.

"Finally!" Kronos bellowed. "The Olympian Council—so proud and mighty. Which seat of power shall I destroy first?"

Ethan Nakamura stood to one side, trying to stay out of the way of his master's scythe. The hearth was almost dead, just a few coals glowing deep in the ashes. Hestia was nowhere to be seen. The Ophiotaurus swam in his water sphere in the far corner of the room, wisely not making a sound, but it wouldn't be long before Kronos noticed him.

Percy, Annabeth, Grover, Thalia, and Magnus stepped forward into the torchlight. Jack hovered at Magnus’s side. Ethan saw them first.

“My lord,” he warned.

Kronos turned and smiled through Luke's face. Annabeth made a painful sound in the back of her throat, like someone had just sucker punched her. Percy didn’t blame her. He felt like he was getting sucker punched too. He wanted to save Luke this time.

"Shall I destroy you first, Jackson?" Kronos asked. "Is that the choice you will make—to fight me and die instead of bowing down? Prophecies never end well, you know."

“Luke, you don’t have to do this,” Percy said. “You can still fight him.”

Kronos sneered. “Luke’s not here right now,” he said.

“You’re right,” Percy agreed. “Because Luke would fight with a sword, but I suppose you don’t have his skill.”

The scythe began to change until it became the half-steel, half-Celestial bronze blade Luke called Backbiter.

“No, don’t!” Annabeth yelled as Kronos came at Percy.

His instincts took over. Percy dodged and slashed and rolled. Everything about the fight was so familiar to Percy that it almost felt like he was watching a movie of the fight through his own eyes.

Silver arrows clattered off Kronos’s arm. Thalia shouted in outrage and her shield spiraled out as she drew her spear.

Ethan ducked to one side, trying to get behind Percy until Annabeth intercepted him. They started to fight, but Percy couldn't focus on how she was doing. He was vaguely aware of Grover playing his reed pipes. The sound filled him with warmth and courage—thoughts of sunlight and a blue sky and a calm meadow, somewhere far away from the war.

“What do I do, señor?” Jack asked.

“I don’t care, just don’t do so much that I die!” Magnus screamed. He was running around in a panic picking up bits of rubble and throwing them haphazardly at Kronos and Ethan.

Percy backed up to the throne of Hephaestus and jumped up onto the seat as Kronos slashed at him. The throne whirred and hummed with secret mechanisms.  _ Defense mode _ , it warned.  _ Defense mode _ .

Percy jumped over Kronos’s head as the throne shot tendrils of electricity in all directions. One hit Kronos in the face, arcing down his body and up his sword.

“ARG!” He crumpled to his knees and dropped Backbiter.

“Whoops,” Percy muttered. “Sorry not sorry.”

“Luke, listen!” Annabeth yelled. “Please!” She kicked Ethan out of her way and charged at Kronos.

Kronos flicked his hand. Annabeth flew backward, slamming into the throne of her mother and crumpling to the floor.

"Annabeth!" Percy and Magnus screamed.

Thalia had a fire burning in her eyes. No, more than fire, it was like lightning. She yelled defiantly and pointed her spear at Kronos. Electricity streaked down from the sky and channeled through the spear and hit Kronos. The Titan flew backwards, knocking the back of Zeus’s throne clean off.

Ethan got to his feet. He stood between Annabeth and Percy. Grover’s music took on a more urgent tune. He moved towards Annabeth, but he couldn’t go any faster and keep up the song. Grass grew on the floor of the throne room. Tiny roots crept up between the cracks of the marble stones.

Kronos rose to one knee. His hair smoldered. His face was covered with electrical burns. He reached for his sword, but this time it didn't fly into his hands.

“Nakamura!” he groaned. “Time to prove yourself. You know Jackson’s secret weakness. Kill him, and you will have rewards beyond measure.”

Ethan's eyes dropped to Percy’s midsection. Even if he couldn't kill Percy himself, all he had to do was tell Kronos.

"Look around you, Ethan," Percy said. "The end of the world. Is this the reward you want? Do you really want everything destroyed—the good with the bad? Everything?"

Grover was almost to Annabeth now. The grass thickened on the floor. The roots were almost a foot long, like a stubble of whiskers. Magnus crawled after him. Hopefully, he would be able to heal Annabeth.

"There is no throne to Nemesis," Ethan muttered. "No throne to my mother."

"That's right!" Kronos tried to get up, but stumbled. Above his left ear, a patch of blond hair still smoldered. "Strike them down! They deserve to suffer."

"You said your mom is the goddess of balance," Percy reminded him. "The minor gods deserve better, Ethan, but total destruction isn't balance. Kronos doesn't build. He only destroys."

Ethan looked at the sizzling throne of Hephaestus. Grover's music kept playing, and Ethan swayed to it, as if the song were filling him with nostalgia—a wish to see a beautiful day, to be anywhere but here. His good eye blinked. Then he charged… but not at Percy.

“No!” Percy shouted.

But it was too late. While Kronos was still on his knees, Ethan brought down his sword on the Titan lord’s neck. The blade shattered, and Ethan flew backwards from the release created.

Kronos rose unsteadily, towering over his servant. "Treason," he snarled.

Grover's music kept playing, and grass grew around Ethan's body. Ethan stared at Percy, his face tight with pain.

"Deserve better," he gasped. "If they just… had thrones… Protect Allegra…"

Kronos stomped his foot, and the floor ruptured around Ethan. The son of Nemesis fell through a fissure that went straight through the heart of the mountain—straight into open air.

“No,” Percy said, staring at the fissure.

"So much for him." Kronos picked up his sword. "And now for the rest of you."

Grover and Magnus had reached Annabeth now. Magnus had a hand pressed to her forehead and Grover continued his music. Everywhere Kronos stepped, the roots wrapped around his feet, but the roots weren't thick or strong enough to do much more than annoy the Titan.

Thalia attacked with her spear and Percy attacked with Riptide, but for each strike that Kronos blocked with Backbiter, the other bounced off his invincible skin.

Kronos slashed an armrest off the throne of Ares, though Percy didn’t really care, and then backed Percy up to his dad’s throne.

"Oh, yes," Kronos said. "This one will make fine kindling for my new hearth!"

Their blades clashed in a shower of sparks. Thalia struck furiously at every spot she could reach on Kronos, but couldn’t find his vulnerable spot.

Percy pushed Kronos back and stuck again—slashing Riptide across his breastplate so hard he cut a gash in the Celestial bronze.

Kronos stamped his foot again and time slowed. Percy tried to attack but he was moving at the speed of a glacier. Thalia’s face was scrunched up in concentration as she tried to move faster than the snails pace she was currently charging with.

Kronos backed up leisurely, catching his breath. He shot them both an amused smile as he watched them fight through the syrupy air.

"It's too late, Percy Jackson," he said. "Behold."

He pointed to the hearth, and the coals glowed. A sheet of white smoke poured from the fire, forming images like an Iris-message. Percy saw Nico, still trapped behind the wall of force shouting commands to his skeletons furiously. The son of Hades was barely awake, yet he kept summoning more and more undead troops to replace the ones that kept getting cut down by the enemy. On the other side of the wall, Hades fought from a black chariot, summoning wave after wave of zombies. Like his son he seemed tired, but the god was faring much better than Nico at staying awake. Unfortunately, like Nico’s troops, Hades’s zombies were barely making a dent to the enemy. Meanwhile, Manhattan was being destroyed. Mortals, now fully awake, were running in terror. Cars swerved and crashed.

The scene shifted, and Percy saw Typhon’s progress.

The monster approached, moving rapidly over the Jersey Shore. Chariots circled it, locked in combat as the gods attacked. Lightning flashed. Arrows of gold and silver streaked into the cloud like rocket tracers and exploded. Slowly, the cloud ripped apart, to show Typhon clearly.

Percy looked away from Typhon’s face as it was revealed. The image of Typhon’s head shifted from one horrible monster to an even more horrible monster would never leave his mind.

"The Olympians are giving their final effort." Kronos laughed. "How pathetic."

Zeus threw a thunderbolt from his chariot. The blast lit up the world. Percy could feel the shock even here on Olympus, but when the dust cleared, Typhon was still standing. He staggered a bit, with a smoking crater on top of his misshapen head, but he roared in anger and kept advancing. Typhon stepped into the Hudson River and barely sank to mid-calf.

_ Now _ , Percy thought.  _ Come on, dad _ .

Like a miracle, a conch horn sounded from the smoky picture. The call of the ocean. The call of Poseidon.

All around Typhon, the Hudson River erupted, churning with forty-foot waves. Out of the water burst a new chariot—this one pulled by massive hippocampi, who swam in air as easily as in water. Poseidon, glowing with a blue aura of power, rode a defiant circle around the giant's legs. As he swung his trident, the river responded, making a funnel cloud around the monster.

"No!" Kronos bellowed after a moment of stunned silence. "NO!"

"NOW, MY BRETHREN!" Poseidon's voice bellowed. "STRIKE FOR OLYMPUS!"

Warriors burst out of the river, riding the waves on huge sharks and dragons and seahorses. It was a legion of Cyclopes, and leading them into battle was Tyson. Riding behind him was Briares.

The Cyclopes held huge lengths of black iron chains—big enough to anchor a battleship—with grappling hooks at the ends. They swung them like lassos and began to ensnare Typhon, throwing lines around the creature's legs and arms, using the tide to keep circling, slowly tangling him.

Typhon shook and roared and yanked at the chains, pulling some of the Cyclopes off their mounts; but there were too many chains. The sheer weight of the Cyclops battalion began to weigh Typhon down.

Poseidon threw his trident and impaled the monster in the throat. Golden blood, immortal ichor, spewed from the wound, making a waterfall taller than a skyscraper. The trident flew back to Poseidon's hand.

The other gods struck with renewed force. Ares stabbed Typhon in the nose. Silver arrows sprouted from one of his eyes. Golden arrows set fire to the monster’s loincloth. Lightning bolt after lightning bolt struck the giant. Finally, the water rose, wrapping Typhon like a cocoon, and he began to sink under the weight of the chains.

Typhon bellowed in agony, thrashing with such force that waves sloshed the Jersey shore, soaking five-story buildings and splashing over the George Washington Bridge—but down he went as Poseidon opened a special tunnel for him at the bottom of the river—an endless water slide that would take him straight to Tartarus. The giant's head went under in a seething whirlpool, and he was gone.

"BAH!" Kronos screamed. He slashed his sword through the smoke, tearing the image to shreds.

Thalia started laughing. “The gods are coming. You’ve lost.”

"I haven't even started."

He advanced with blinding speed. Percy sidestepped and jabbed under Kronos's guard. It was a good trick. Unfortunately, Luke knew it. He countered the strike and disarmed Percy using the disarming technique that was one of the first moves Luke had ever taught Percy. Riptide skittered across the ground and fell straight into the open fissure.

"STOP!" Annabeth came from nowhere.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ooooh, I'm getting really excited. There's only two more chapters with the actual battle, and then the rest are the aftermath and then the last week of summer at Camp. I'm barely able to stop myself from spamming you guys with a whole bunch of chapter updates because there's a few chapters I'm really excited for.
> 
> Ahhh, anyway, hope you liked this chapter!


	30. Interrupting Your Regularly Scheduled Battle Scene to Check in on the Healer (Will)

THALIA’S WORDS RANG IN WILL’S EARS. Had it really only been a few minutes since she had charged up to Olympus warning them to take cover?

_ Take cover! I don’t know if we can keep them from coming up! _

When the Hunter had come running back towards the elevator with Percy, Annabeth, and Grover in tow, they all had various expressions on their faces.

Thalia was cold and hard, resigned to fight against the evil Titan currently inhabiting the body of someone she used to know.

Grover was worried, frantic, and determined. Will knew the satyr would follow his friends to the end of the world and back.

Annabeth looked fearful of what she knew was coming and Will would have loved nothing more than to reassure her that she could do this and that he and Percy and all their friends would be there to help her heal.

Percy just looked angry. Angry about what, Will didn’t know. Maybe he was mad that the fight couldn’t have been avoided. Or maybe he was angry about Luke.

They ran past Will and the makeshift infirmary and into the elevator. The four demigods disappeared behind the doors as they closed.

Will navigated through thick trees as he, Lydia, and the nymphs and dryads moved the injured, dead, and supplies deeper into the parks and gardens they had set up in. They moved behind rows of trees and layers of bushes.

Will hurried to the guardrail and peered down at the city below to watch the battle unfold.

“Will?” Lydia asked quietly. “Are we safe here?”

Will turned to look at her and saw some of the other younger children looking up at him, waiting for an answer.

“I don’t know,” he answered truthfully. “Maybe. Just…” he sighed. “Look. Kronos is going to be stopped. Right? Percy Jackson is going to stop him like the prophecy says.”

_ Actually _ , a little unhelpful voice in his mind said,  _ Percy is supposed to make a choice to preserve or raze Olympus. And according to the rest of the campers, Percy’s going to die. You know different, but what evidence do you have of that? _

“We just have to stay here, out of sight from all the bad guys until that happens,” Will continued, ignoring the voice. “Okay?”

Lydia nodded, but Will could still see the fear in her eyes. Will gave his sister a hug. Then he returned to peering through binoculars on the guardrail to keep an eye on the battle.

As Will watched, cracks appeared in the road, the sidewalks, the sides of the buildings. Skeletal hands grasped the air as the dead clawed their way into the world of the living. There were thousands of them, and as they emerged, the Titan's monsters got jumpy and started to back up. The sky turned dark and cold. Shadows thickened. As the dead soldiers formed up ranks with their guns and swords and spears, Hades strolled down Fifth Avenue.

Will didn’t see Nico anywhere though. He had thought that maybe he would be with his father, but apparently that wasn’t the case.

“What’s going on?” Pollux asked, maneuvering himself to the set of binoculars on the other side of Will.

“Hades raised the dead,” Will said absently. “There’s a whole army of them.”

Hopeful whispers filled the air.

“Whoa,” Lydia gasped. “Will…” She pointed at a shimmering wall.

“He’s collapsing the magic barriers,” a Hunter of Artemis said, looking through her own set of binoculars. “The mortals are waking up.”

Sure enough, outside the barrier, car engines revved to life. Pedestrians woke up and stared uncomprehendingly at the monsters and zombies all around them. No telling what they saw through the Mist, but it was definitely plenty scary. Car doors opened.

Will watched as Hades struck at the barrier with black energy. It didn’t work. Hades waved a hand and shouted something, causing his army of the dead to clash with the Titan’s monsters. Fifth Avenue exploded into absolute chaos. Mortals screamed and ran for cover. Demeter waved her hand and an entire column of giants turned into a wheat field. Persephone changed the dracaenae's spears into sunflowers.

“Everyone stay quiet and don’t move!” Will shouted. “Kronos is coming up!”

Minutes later, they could hear the damage. Kronos bellowed and roared as he destroyed trees and buildings on his way to Olympus.

Pollux’s hand grasped the hilt of his sword. “We should fight back,” he whispered.

“No,” Will said firmly. “Percy’s going to be the one to defeat him. It’s my job to make sure you guys aren’t reckless and get yourselves hurt worse or killed.” He glared at the obviously injured demigod. “You’re injured, so you stay here. You shouldn’t even be standing at one of these binoculars. What are you doing? Why did I  _ let _ you do this for so long?”

Pollux grumbled a little as he allowed Will to force him to sit on the ground.

Will heard voices in the distance, probably Percy and the others, but he tuned them out. He squeezed Lydia’s hand as she flinched with every explosion Kronos caused. But he couldn’t tune out Kronos’s voice.

“Brick by brick!” the Titan roared. “That was my promise. Tear it down BRICK BY BRICK!”

It was followed by an explosion.

“I want to go home,” Lydia whimpered. “I want everything to be normal again and I want to go to Camp and see L-Lee…”

“Lee!” Will said, capitalizing on the topic changer. “You know, I bet Lee’s having one of those stupid archery contests in Elysium right now. You remember those?”

Lydia sniffled and nodded. “Yeah. He and Michael would argue about who was the best.”

“He’s probably doing that right now,” Will said. “Him and all the other Apollo kids from over the centuries. They’re all probably shooting bullseyes every time.”

“Lee would still win,” Lydia said quietly.

Will grinned. “Of course he would.”

Thunder shook the mountain.

Lydia shrieked, camping a hand over her mouth.

“You’re okay, you’re okay,” Will said. “That was Thalia or Zeus probably. Good guys. They’re on our side.”

Pollux’s sword clattered to the ground at Will’s feet, startling him. Will fell over, causing Lydia to giggle.

“Sorry,” Pollux said, reaching for the sword. “I don’t know what happened.”

Will handed him the sword. “It’s okay. I just wasn’t expecting it.” He stared up in the direction of where he hoped the Palace of the Gods was.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Short chapter and also kind of disrupting the battle, so I'll post the next chapter too.


	31. It's Just Four Words (Annabeth)

BACKBITER ALMOST GOT HER. Annabeth barely managed to catch the strike on her dagger hilt despite expecting the move. Her hand was shaking so bad it was a wonder she managed to catch it at all.

“Luke,” she whispered. “I’m so, so sorry. But you have to trust me now.”

Kronos roared in outrage. "Luke Castellan is dead! His body will burn away as I assume my true form!"

Out of the corners of her eyes, Annabeth could see that Percy and Thalia were frozen again. Grover and Magnus were somewhere behind her, but she assumed they were frozen too.

Kronos pushed against her, trying to dislodge his blade, but she held him in check, her arms trembling as he forced his sword down toward her neck.

"Your mother," Annabeth grunted. "She saw your fate."

"Service to Kronos!" the Titan roared. "This is my fate."

"No!" Annabeth insisted. Her eyes were tearing up, Luke’s face blurring. "That's not the end, Luke. The prophecy: she saw what you would do. It applies to you!" Her voice broke.

"I will crush you, child!" Kronos bellowed.

“No,” Annabeth said sadly. “You won’t. You’re holding Kronos back even now. Luke, please,” she begged. “Please try to force him out. I don’t want to-”

"LIES!" Kronos pushed again, and this time Annabeth lost her balance. With his free hand, Kronos struck her face, and she slid backward.

The slap stung her. Annabeth could feel blood trickling from the corner of her mouth. Kronos loomed over her and she swallowed back a sob.

“Family, Luke,” she choked out. “You promised.”

_ The trash can lid was ripped away and she flew at her attacker with her hammer. _

_ “Whoa!” the boy who had removed the lid said. He grabbed Annabeth’s wrist and her hammer skittered across the cement. _

_ She fought and kicked. “No more monsters! Go away!” _

_ "It's okay!" the boy struggled to hold her. "Thalia, put your shield up. You're scaring her." _

_ The girl with him, Thalia, tapped her shield, and it shrank into a silver bracelet. "Hey, it's all right," she said. "We're not going to hurt you. I'm Thalia. This is Luke." _

_ "Monsters!" Annabeth cried. _

_ "No," Luke promised. "But we know all about monsters. We fight them too." _

_ Slowly, Annabeth stopped kicking. She studied Luke and Thalia with large intelligent gray eyes. _

_ "You're like me?" she said suspiciously. _

_ "Yeah," Luke said. "We're… well, it's hard to explain, but we're monster fighters. Where's your family?" _

_ "My family hates me," Annabeth said. "They don't want me. I ran away." _

_ "What's your name, kiddo?" Thalia asked. _

_ "Annabeth." _

_ Luke smiled. "Nice name. I tell you what, Annabeth—you're pretty fierce. We could use a fighter like you." _

_ Annabeth's eyes widened. "You could?" _

_ "Oh, yeah." Luke turned his knife and offered her the handle. "How'd you like a real monster-slaying weapon? This is Celestial bronze. Works a lot better than a hammer." _

_ Annabeth gripped the hilt. _

_ "Knives are only for the bravest and quickest fighters," Luke explained. "They don't have the reach or power of a sword, but they're easy to conceal and they can find weak spots in your enemy's armor. It takes a clever warrior to use a knife. I have a feeling you're pretty clever." _

_ Annabeth stared at him with adoration. "I am!" _

_ Thalia grinned. "We'd better get going, Annabeth. We have a safe house on the James River. We'll get you some clothes and food." _

_ "You're… you're not going to take me back to my family?" she said. "Promise?" _

_ Luke put his hand on her shoulder. "You're part of our family now. And I promise I won't let anything hurt you. I'm not going to fail you like our families did us. Deal?"  _

_ "Deal!" Annabeth said happily. _

_ "Now, come on," Thalia said. "We can't stay put for long!"  _

Annabeth willed herself not to cry.

Kronos staggered, staring at the knife she held and eyes running over her face. “Promise,” he repeated.

She stared up at Kronos and watched the golden eyes darken into blue eyes. Then he gasped like he couldn’t get air. “Annabeth…”

_ Luke’s voice _ .

Luke stumbled forward like he couldn't control his own body. "You're bleeding. . . ."

“Get away from her!” Thalia shrieked.

“Thalia, no,” Annabeth protested, but the daughter of Zeus wasn’t listening.

“Stop!” Magnus yelled.

An energy like a shock wave rolled over Annabeth. Her dagger flew out of her hand and clattered to the floor somewhere too far away for her to reach. Thalia and her spear parted ways forcefully, Thalia getting thrown towards Grover and her spear hurtling itself towards the damaged thrones. Backbiter spun off into the hearth. Jack went screaming past, impaling himself into the wall on the opposite side of the room.

“Not cool, señor!”

Annabeth rolled over onto her stomach to try and find her dagger. A bronze knife glinted by Percy’s feet.

“Percy, my knife,” she called weakly.

Percy scooped up the knife and moved towards Annabeth and Luke. “Luke,” he said softly.

Anger rippled across Luke’s face. Kronos's voice growled: "Jackson…" His body was starting to glow and turn gold.

He gasped again. Luke's voice: "He's changing. Help. He's… he's almost ready. He won't need my body anymore. Please—"

"NO!" Kronos bellowed. He looked around for his sword, but it was in the hearth, glowing among the coals. He stumbled toward it. Percy tried to stop him, but Kronos pushed him out of the way with such force he landed next to Annabeth and cracked his head on the base of Athena's throne. If not for the curse of Achilles, he would probably be bleeding out with a concussion.

“Ow,” Percy mumbled.

Kronos bellowed in pain. He must have burned himself trying to touch his sword that was in the flames.

Luke turned and collapsed, clutching his ruined hands. "Please, Percy…"

“You can push him out,” Percy said, his hand holding the dagger shaking. “You don’t have to do this, Luke.”

Luke smiled ruefully. “Yeah, I do. Please, Percy. I can do this. I can keep him controlled.” He was definitely glowing now, his skin starting to smoke. “Please,” he groaned. “No time.”

“Okay,” Percy said so quietly Annabeth wasn’t sure he’d even spoken at all. He held out the dagger’s hilt for Luke to take.

“Are you insane?” Thalia shouted.

Grover yelped. “Percy? Um…”

Percy knelt down next to Annabeth and squeezed her hand as Luke unlatched the side straps of his armor, exposing a small bit of skin just under his left arm. They flinched as Luke stabbed his Achilles heel with Annabeth’s dagger.

It wasn't a deep cut, but Luke howled. His eyes glowed like lava. The throne room shook, throwing Annabeth flat on her stomach and Percy almost flopped on top of her. An aura of energy surrounded Luke, growing brighter and brighter. Annabeth squeezed her eyes shut and felt a force like a nuclear explosion blister her skin and crack her lips.

It was silent for a long time before she forced herself to open her eyes again.

Luke was sprawled at the hearth. On the floor around him was a blackened circle of ash. Kronos’s scythe had liquified into molten metal and was trickling into the coals of the hearth, which now glowed like a blacksmith’s furnace.

Luke's left side was bloody. His eyes were open—blue eyes, the way they used to be. His breath was a deep rattle.

"Good… blade," he croaked.

Percy helped Annabeth crawl over to Luke. Thalia silently came to kneel next to him and Grover and Magnus slowly walked over.

Luke gazed at Annabeth. "You knew. I almost killed you, but you knew…"

“I’m so sorry,” Annabeth whispered. “I should have found a better way. It shouldn’t have to end like this, Luke.” Hot tears rolled down her cheeks.

Magnus reached out a hand. “I can try and heal him,” he offered.

“No,” Luke managed. “You can’t fix this.”

Thalia stared down at Luke. “Yes, he can,” she protested. “Luke, let him try.”

“S’my only weak spot,” Luke said. “It’s fatal. Don’t… don’t waste your energy on me.”

“Luke,” Annabeth said, taking one of his hands. “This is Magnus. He’s my cousin. I wish you could have met sooner. And… and under better circumstances. I…” her voice shuddered. “I’ll ask Nico to put in a good word for you. You’ll go to Elysium. You were a hero in the end, Luke.”

Luke shook his head weakly. "Think… rebirth. Try for three times. Isles of the Blest."

Annabeth sniffled. "You always pushed yourself too hard."

“Percy?” Luke asked. “Don’t you dare hurt her.”

Percy gave Luke a small smile. “I wouldn't dream of it.”

“Good.” Luke coughed and his lips glistened red. “Thalia… I’m sorry. For everything.”

Thalia nodded, eyes sparkling with tears. “I know. Me too.”

"Grover," Luke gulped. "You're the bravest satyr I ever knew."

Grover sniffled.

Another cough. Luke gripped Percy’s sleeve. “Ethan,” he said. “Me. All the unclaimed. Don’t let it… Don’t let it happen again.” His eyes were angry, but pleading too.

"I won't," Percy said. "I promise."

Luke nodded, and his hand went slack.

Annabeth let out a sob and buried her face into Percy’s shoulder. He held her tightly, rocking gently. She could feel him taking shuddering breaths.

Magnus placed a hand on Annabeth’s back. He didn’t say anything, but that was okay. She just needed to feel his presence.

The gods arrived a few minutes later in their full war regalia, thundering into the throne room and expecting a battle.

“Percy,” Poseidon called, awe in his voice. “What… what is this?”

Percy lifted his head. He kept his arms wrapped around Annabeth.

“We need a shroud,” he announced, voice cracking. “A shroud for the son of Hermes.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aww, I'm sorry I didn't save Luke, but I did basically tell you that the "hero's fate" would be "unchanged" when I had the chapter with Alex getting her prophecy.
> 
> And, yes, in the last chapter, Pollux dropping his sword was because of the peace of Frey Magnus did in this chapter.


	32. This is an Offer They're Not Allowed to Refuse (Percy)

LUKE CASTELLAN WAS DEAD. Again.

Percy felt like he had failed even though Alex’s prophecy literally said they wouldn’t be able to change the hero’s, Luke’s, fate.

Still, watching the Fates come to retrieve Luke’s body hurt.

One of them looked at Percy. She didn’t say anything, but suddenly, Percy’s life was flashing before his eyes. He caught glimpses of Jason, Piper, Leo, Frank, and Hazel. Then he was twenty with Annabeth. Then a middle-aged man. Then he turned old and withered. All the strength left his body, and he saw his own tombstone and an open grave, a coffin being lowered into the ground.

It happened in less than a second.

_ It is done _ , the Fate said.

The Fate held up the snippet of blue yarn—the same one Percy had seen when he was twelve, the lifeline he’d watched them snip. Luke’s string.

They gathered up Luke's body, now wrapped in a white-and-green shroud, and began carrying it out of the throne room.

"Wait," Hermes said.

The messenger god was dressed in his classic outfit of white Greek robes, sandals, and helmet. The wings of his helm fluttered as he walked. The snakes George and Martha curled around his caduceus, murmuring, _ Luke, poor Luke. _

Hermes unwrapped Luke's face and kissed his forehead. He murmured some words in Ancient Greek—a final blessing. "Farewell," he whispered. Then he nodded and allowed the Fates to carry away his son's body.

Jack flew back to Magnus’s hand. Magnus’s eyes went out of focus for a moment. He gave them a dazed look before slumping to the floor.

Annabeth gently looped the pendant necklace around her cousin’s neck as Apollo stepped forward.

“I’ve got this,” the god said, flashing them a bright white smile with his perfect teeth. “God of medicine, at your service.” He passed his hand over Magnus and spoke an incantation.

Magnus’s eyes flew open. “What happened?”

“Jack came back,” Annabeth said. She looked at Apollo. “Thanks, Apollo.”

Apollo grinned. “Careful with that sword, Mangus,” he said. He was still smiling, but his tone was serious.

Magnus reached up to touch the pendant. “Yeah.”

The next few hours were a blur of deja vu. Percy asked Zeus to make the top of the Empire State Building to light up blue. He and the other demigods helped care for the wounded while the gods went to work repairing the throne room.

Once the sky bridge reformed, Percy greeted his friends who had survived. To his surprise, Alex was there with Ethan and Allegra Nakamura.

“Ethan!” Percy gapped. “You’re alive!”

Ethan gave Percy a look. “If you even think about hugging me, Jackson-”

“How did you survive?” Percy asked, cutting him off.

“Alex!” Allegra beamed. “We were fighting and I knew it was Ethan, so…”

“I flew up and got him,” Alex grumbled. “I’m going to start charging for all the rides I’ve been giving.” She peered over Percy’s shoulder. “Is Magnus up here?”

“Him and Annabeth are helping people get to the throne room right now,” Percy said. “We probably should head that way.”

Ethan hesitated. “Allegra and I should go.”

“No way,” Percy said, shaking his head. “You’re both coming to Camp after this, right?”

“Why would we go to Camp Half-Blood?” Ethan asked harshly.

Percy offered them a smile. “Well, for one, I invited you. For two, it’s a safe place where monsters can’t get you. And three, I’m going to need your help with something.”

“Help with what?” Allegra asked.

“You’ll find out if you come with me to the throne room,” Percy said.

Ethan finally nodded. “Fine.”

“Percy!” Nico called. He hurried over. “I sent Mrs. O’Leary to take Chiron back to Camp. He’ll be fine.”

Percy breathed a sigh of relief. “Good. That’s good.”

* * *

The gods had finished fixing the throne room and everyone had managed to gather there. A few demigods were still trickling in when Percy, Nico, Alex, Ethan and Allegra arrived. The Nakamura’s stuck to the back of the group, but remained close to Percy and Alex who would undoubtedly defend them if anyone said anything about Titan spies.

Dionysus's head was wrapped in a bandage. He looked Percy up and down and said, "Well, Percy Jackson. I see Castor and Pollux made it through, so I suppose you aren't completely inept. It's all thanks to my training, I suppose."

Percy smiled inwardly at the correct name. “Yes, sir,” he said.

Mr. D nodded. "As thanks for my bravery, Zeus has cut my probation at that miserable camp in half. I now have only fifty years left instead of one hundred."

"Fifty years, huh?"

"Don't get so excited, Jackson," he said. "I still plan on making your life miserable."

Percy couldn't help smiling now. "Naturally."

"Just so we understand each other."

Ethan frowned. “I forgot we’ll have to put up with him.”

“Mr. D isn’t too bad,” Percy said.

Grover came up to Percy. He looked surprised to see Ethan and Allegra. “What are they doing here?”

“Apparently Percy needs our help with something and we had to go with him to the throne room to find out,” Allegra said. She turned to Percy. “So? What is it?”

“Not now,” Percy said. “This is going to be good, I promise.”

Grover stayed at Percy’s side. "So many nature spirits dead, Percy. So many."

Percy put my arm around his shoulders and gave him a rag to blow his nose. "You did a great job, G-man. We will come back from this. We'll plant new trees. We'll clean up the parks. Your friends will be reincarnated into a better world."

He sniffled dejectedly. "I… I suppose. But it was hard enough to rally them before. I'm still an outcast. I could barely get anyone to listen to me about Pan. Now will they ever listen to me again? I led them into a slaughter."

"They will listen," Percy promised. "Because you care about them. You care about the Wild more than anyone."

Grover tried for a smile. "Thanks, Percy. I hope… I hope you know I'm really proud to be your friend."

Percy patted his arm. "Luke was right about one thing, G-man. You're the bravest satyr I ever met."

He blushed, but before he could say anything, conch horns blew. The army of Poseidon marched into the throne room.

"Percy!" Tyson yelled. He charged toward Percy with his arms open. Fortunately he'd shrunk back to normal size, so his hug was like getting hit by a tractor, not the entire farm. "You are not dead!" he said.

"Yeah!" Percy agreed. "Amazing, huh?"

Tyson clapped his hands and laughed happily. "I am not dead either. Yay! We chained Typhon. It was fun!"

Behind him, fifty other armored Cyclopes laughed and nodded and gave each other high fives.

"Tyson led us," one rumbled. "He is brave!"

"Bravest of the Cyclopes!" another bellowed.

Tyson blushed. "Was nothing."

"I saw you!" Percy said. "You were incredible!"

Grover steeled his nerves and said, "Yes. Um… three cheers for Tyson!"

"YAAARRRRR!" the Cyclopes roared.

"Please don't eat me," Grover muttered.

The conch horns blasted again. The Cyclopes parted, and Poseidon strode into the throne room in his battle armor, his trident glowing in his hands.

"Tyson!" he roared. "Well done, my son. And Percy—" His face turned stern. He wagged his finger at Percy. "I even forgive you for sitting on my throne. You have saved Olympus!" He held out his arms and gave Percy a hug.

Percy breathed in the smell of a salty beach and fresh sea air as he hugged his dad back tightly. It was like everything that had been stressing him out for the past few days (past few years, really) just melted away. For the first time in a long time, he allowed himself to relax.

When Poseidon pulled away, he smiled kindly at Percy.

“I am proud of you, Percy,” Poseidon said.

Percy smiled back. “I know.”

"POSEIDON!" a voice roared.

Zeus had taken his throne. He glared across the room at Poseidon while all the other gods filed in and took their seats. Hades took a seat on a simple stone guest chair at the foot of the hearth.

"Well, Poseidon?" Zeus grumped. "Are you too proud to join us in council, my brother?"

Poseidon winked at Percy. “I would be honored, Lord Zeus.” He strode over to his fishing seat, and the Olympian Council convened.

* * *

Zeus gave a great speech about the bravery of the gods, which was a load of crap in Percy’s opinion, Ethan and Allegra’s too by the looks on their faces, but he didn’t say anything.

"As for my brothers," Zeus said, "we are thankful"—he cleared his throat like the words were hard to get out—"erm, thankful for the aid of Hades."

Hades nodded with a smug look on his face. His eyes shifted towards the group of demigods to land on Nico who looked pretty pleased with himself.

"And, of course," Zeus continued, though he looked like his pants were smoldering, "we must… um… thank Poseidon."

"I'm sorry, brother," Poseidon said. "What was that?"

"We must thank Poseidon," Zeus growled. "Without whom… it would've been difficult—"

"Difficult?" Poseidon asked innocently.

Percy stifled a laugh.

"Impossible," Zeus said. "Impossible to defeat Typhon."

The gods murmured agreement and pounded their weapons in approval.

"Which leaves us," Zeus said, "only the matter of thanking our young demigod heroes, who defended Olympus so well—even if there are a few dents in my throne." He called Thalia forward first, since she was his daughter, and promised her help in filling the Hunters' ranks.

Artemis smiled. "You have done well, my lieutenant. You have made me proud, and all those Hunters who perished in my service will never be forgotten. They will achieve Elysium, I am sure." She glared pointedly at Hades.

He shrugged. "Probably."

Artemis glared at him some more.

"Okay," Hades grumbled. "I'll streamline their application process."

Thalia beamed with pride. "Thank you, my lady." She bowed to the gods and then limped over to stand by Artemis's side.

"Tyson, son of Poseidon!" Zeus called. Tyson looked nervous, but he went to stand in the middle of the Council, and Zeus grunted.

"Doesn't miss many meals, does he?" Zeus muttered. "Tyson, for your bravery in the war, and for leading the Cyclopes, you are appointed a general in the armies of Olympus. You shall henceforth lead your brethren into war whenever required by the gods. And you shall have a new… um… what kind of weapon would you like? A sword? An axe?"

"Stick!" Tyson said, showing his broken club.

"Very well," Zeus said. "We will grant you a new, er, stick. The best stick that may be found."

"Hooray!" Tyson cried, and all the Cyclopes cheered and pounded him on the back as he rejoined them.

"Grover Underwood of the satyrs!" Dionysus called.

Grover came forward nervously.

"Oh, stop chewing your shirt," Dionysus chided. "Honestly, I'm not going to blast you. For your bravery and sacrifice, blah, blah, blah, and since we have an unfortunate vacancy, the gods have seen fit to name you a member of the Council of Cloven Elders."

Grover collapsed on the spot.

"Oh, wonderful," Dionysus sighed, as several naiads came forward to help Grover. "Well, when he wakes up, someone tell him that he will no longer be an outcast, and that all satyrs, naiads, and other spirits of nature will henceforth treat him as a lord of the Wild, with all rights, privileges, and honors, blah, blah, blah. Now please, drag him off before he wakes up and starts groveling."

"FOOOOOD," Grover moaned, as the nature spirits carried him away.

Percy and Annabeth shared an amused look.

Athena called, "Annabeth Chase, my own daughter."

Annabeth squeezed Percy’s hand, then walked forward and knelt at her mother's feet.

Athena smiled. "You, my daughter, have exceeded all expectations. You have used your wits, your strength, and your courage to defend this city, and our seat of power. It has come to our attention that Olympus is… well, trashed. The Titan lord did much damage that will have to be repaired. We could rebuild it by magic, of course, and make it just as it was. But the gods feel that the city could be improved. We will take this as an opportunity. And you, my daughter, will design these improvements."

Annabeth’s face lit up. Percy could already see her picturing the improvements she could make to the original design she had done for Olympus the first time.

“I… I’d be honored,” Annabeth said. “Thank you.”

"Rise, my daughter, official architect of Olympus."

Annabeth rose in a trance and walked back toward Percy.

“I’m going to be looking at blueprints with you for months aren’t I?” Percy asked her.

Annabeth shoved him.

“Hey!” he protested. “You know it’s true.”

"PERCY JACKSON!" Poseidon announced. The name echoed around the chamber.

All talking died down. The room was silent except for the crackle of the hearth fire. Everyone's eyes were on Percy—all the gods, the demigods, the Cyclopes, the spirits.

Percy walked into the middle of the throne room. Hestia smiled at him reassuringly. She was in the form of a girl now, and she seemed happy and content to be sitting by her fire again.

Reluctantly, Percy bowed to Zeus, then he knelt at his father’s feet.

"Rise, my son," Poseidon said.

Percy stood.

"A great hero must be rewarded," Poseidon said. "Is there anyone here who would deny that my son is deserving?"

None of the gods or goddesses protested.

"The Council agrees," Zeus said. "Percy Jackson, you will have one gift from the gods."

“Any gift?” Percy asked.

Zeus nodded grimly. "I know what you will ask. The greatest gift of all. Yes, if you want it, it shall be yours. The gods have not bestowed this gift on a mortal hero in many centuries, but, Perseus Jackson—if you wish it—you shall be made a god. Immortal. Undying. You shall serve as your father's lieutenant for all time."

There it was. The offer of a lifetime. He was going to turn them down of course, but still. Having Zeus face him and say that if he said the words, he would be a god in an instant. It was crazy, insane.

Zeus apparently took his lack of response for lack of brain cells because he rolled his eyes. “A dimwitted god, apparently. But yes. With the consensus of the entire Council, I can make you immortal. Then I will have to put up with you forever."

"Hmm," Ares mused. "That means I can smash him to a pulp as often as I want, and he'll just keep coming back for more. I like this idea."

"I approve as well," Athena said, though she was looking at Annabeth.

Percy glanced back at Annabeth who was watching him with a pensive face. He looked towards Ethan and Allegra who looked stunned.

Turning back to Zeus, Percy shook his head. “No thanks.”

The Council was silent. The gods frowned at each other like they must have misheard.

Percy almost rolled his eyes. Come on, like godhood was the best gift in the world. There were plenty other things he could ask for that would be much better than that.

"No?" Zeus said. "You are… turning down our generous gift?" There was a dangerous edge to his voice, like a thunderstorm about to erupt.

“I’m not turning down a gift,” Percy said. “I just don’t want to be a god. I’ve got a lot of life left to live and I made a promise to someone.” He ignored the glares the other gods were sending his way. “As for the gift I want, do you promise to grant it?”

Zeus thought about it. "If it is within our power."

"It is," Percy said. "And it's not even difficult. But I need your promise on the River Styx."

"What?" Dionysus cried. "You don't trust us?"

“I have been told way too many times that you should always get a solemn oath,” Percy said.

"Very well!" Zeus growled. "In the name of the Council, we swear by the River Styx to grant your reasonable request as long as it is within our power."

The other gods muttered assent. Thunder boomed, shaking the throne room. The deal was made.

Percy took a deep breath. "From now on, I want you to properly recognize the children of the gods," he said. "All the children… of all the gods."

The Olympians shifted uncomfortably. 

"Percy," Poseidon said, "what exactly do you mean?"

"Kronos couldn't have risen if it hadn't been for a lot of demigods who felt abandoned by their parents," Percy said. "They felt angry, resentful, and unloved, and they had a good reason."

Zeus's royal nostrils flared. "You dare accuse—"

"No more undetermined children," Percy said. "I want you to promise to claim your children—all your demigod children—by the time they turn thirteen. They won't be left out in the world on their own at the mercy of monsters. I want them claimed and brought to camp so they can be trained right, and survive."

"Now, wait just a moment," Apollo said.

"And the minor gods," Percy said, on a roll now. "Nemesis, Iris, Hecate, Morpheus, Hebe—they all deserve a general amnesty and a place at Camp Half-Blood. Their children shouldn't be ignored. Calypso and the other peaceful Titan-kind should be pardoned too. And Hades—"

"Are you calling me a minor god?" Hades bellowed.

"No, my lord," Percy said quickly. "But your children should have a cabin at camp. Nico has proven that. No unclaimed demigods will be crammed into the Hermes cabin anymore, wondering who their parents are. They'll have their own cabins, for all the gods. And no more pact of the Big Three. That didn't work anyway. You've got to stop trying to get rid of powerful demigods. We're going to train them and accept them instead. All children of the gods will be welcome and treated with respect. That is my wish."

Zeus snorted. "Is that all?"

“The demigods who supported Kronos,” Percy added. “They won’t be punished. They’ll be welcomed at Camp if they want.” He turned back to see Chris Rodriguez grinning and Ethan and Allegra giving Percy shocked looks.

"Percy," Poseidon said, drawing Percy’s attention back to the gods, "you ask much. You presume much."

"I hold you to your oath," Percy said. "All of you."

Athena spoke up. "The boy is correct. We have been unwise to ignore our children. It proved a strategic weakness in this war and almost caused our destruction. Percy Jackson, I have had my doubts about you, but perhaps"—she glanced at Annabeth, and then spoke as if the words had a sour taste—"perhaps I was mistaken. I move that we accept the boy's plan."

"Humph," Zeus said. "Being told what to do by a mere child. But I suppose…"

"All in favor," Hermes said.

All the gods raised their hands.

“Thank you,” Percy said.

He turned to leave, but Poseidon called, “Honor guard!”

Immediately the Cyclopes came forward and made two lines from the thrones to the door—an aisle for Percy to walk through. They came to attention.

"All hail, Perseus Jackson," Tyson said. "Hero of Olympus… and my big brother!"

_ Not yet _ , Percy thought.  _ But one day real soon _ .

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Technically yes, Percy is a hero of Olympus, but I guess what I'm talking about is one of the Seven, Reyna, and Nico who I would categorize at the Heroes of Olympus.
> 
> Anyway, first week of school went okay for me. I don't know if anyone reading this is struggling, but what's helping me (at least right now) is having a physical plan that lays out what days I want to work on each class. Just something to put up in your room or in your kitchen or wherever you do your school work that you see every day and can't avoid. Personally, I think it forces me to actually commit myself to doing the work and that helps me. So if that helps you... then there you have it.
> 
> Also, in the books I believe Percy only asks for amnesty for the minor gods, but he doesn't specify their children, so I made that change in this because of course there's Chris but now also Ethan and Allegra.


	33. The Nakamura's Arrive at Camp (Annabeth)

WHEN PERCY LEFT TO GO TALK TO HERMES, Annabeth went to the elevator to wait for him along with their other friends.

Magnus and Will couldn’t stick around because they had to help the injured demigods load into the Camp vans and then ride back with them to get them to the infirmary.

Alex and Nico stayed with Annabeth though. Ethan and Allegra hung back with them unsurely.

“It’s really good to see you two,” Annabeth told them.

Allegra smiled shyly. “Alex talked to me.”

“It’s a wonder she didn’t run away screaming,” Nico muttered.

Alex elbowed Nico. “I’m apparently really good at giving pep talks. So there.”

Allegra laughed. “No, no. It was actually okay. Plus, you saved my cousin.” She glanced at Ethan. “I’m really happy about that.”

“You never told me who your parent is,” Annabeth realized.

“Iris,” Allegra said. “My mom is Iris.”

“Goddess of rainbows,” Annabeth said.

Alex smacked her forehead. “Rainbows! I knew that.”

“You had no idea who she was,” Allegra said. “Your response was very vague.  _ I’ve never heard of her supporting the Titans _ . That could have gone for any number of goddesses.”

By now, Percy was making his way towards them.

“How was it?” Annabeth asked him.

“Good,” Percy said. The front of his shirt was charred.

“Why did you barbeque your shirt?” Ethan asked.

Percy scowled. “Long story. Not my idea.” He pointed to the elevator. “Let’s go?”

The group of six piled into the elevator and rode down to street level. No one spoke as the awful music played.

When they got into the lobby, Percy’s mother and Paul were arguing with the bald security guy, who'd returned to his post.

"I'm telling you," Sally yelled, "we have to go up! My son—" Then she saw Percy and her eyes widened. "Percy!" She squeezed her son tightly in a hug. "We saw the building lit up blue," she said. "We came to find you, but he wouldn’t let us up. Oh, Annabeth.”

"She was getting a bit anxious," Paul said drily.

"I'm all right," Percy promised as Sally hugged Annabeth. "Everything's okay now."

Sally took them all in. “Alex, Nico, good to see you again. Hello,” she said, looking at Ethan and Allegra. “Who are you?”

“Sorry,” Percy said quickly. “Mom, this is Ethan and Allegra. They’re cousins. Ethan and Allegra, this is my mom Sally and my step-dad Paul.”

“Nice to meet you,” Allegra said politely.

“We have to get back to Camp now,” Percy said reluctantly.

Annabeth nodded. “They sent the injured back first with the healers, but… well, we should all be there to help out.”

Paul shook his head. “I still can’t believe it. And the story about the six hundredth floor? Is it really…”

“Olympus,” Percy said. “Yeah.”

Paul looked at the ceiling with a dreamy expression. "I'd like to see that."

"Paul," my mom chided. "It's not for mortals. Anyway, the important thing is we're safe. All of us." She gave each of them a hug before they left.

“You better send us a message when you get back to Camp, Percy,” Sally said.

“I will, mom,” Percy said.

She smiled at him. “Happy birthday, by the way. We’ll have a proper celebration later.”

They waved as they stepped into the final Camp van. Annabeth and Percy settled into seats next to each other.

“Happy birthday, Seaweed Brain,” Annabeth said.

“Happy anniversary, Wise Girl,” Percy said.

Annabeth raised her eyebrows. “Can we even say that?”

“Sure, I mean, this time, like, three or four years ago we started dating,” Percy shrugged.

“I don’t think that’s how it works,” Annabeth laughed. “But okay.”

“You two are so cute and wholesome,” Alex said.

“It’s sickening,” Nico nodded.

Ethan looked at Percy. “Your gift. About including the minor gods. Is that what you were talking about earlier?”

Percy nodded. “I’ll need children of said minor gods to help design their cabins.”

“I can’t believe you’d turn down becoming a god for that,” Ethan said.

“Godhood isn’t the greatest gift,” Percy said. “I’d have to watch all my friends grow up and die. I wouldn’t be able to see my amazing girlfriend,” he said looking at Annabeth.

She smiled back.

“Wholesome,” Alex sighed. “I feel all warm and fuzzy inside just listening to you.”

“Shut up, Alex,” Percy grumbled.

* * *

It took almost twice as long to get back to Camp as it had taken them to get to Manhattan only days earlier. Mostly because the traffic was horrible in the city. Everybody was out on the streets gawking at the war zone damage. Some people were taking pictures of the statues in strange locations or in pieces. Police sirens wailed on every block.

Finally, they made it out of the city and to Camp Half-Blood.

It was almost surreal. Everything was so peaceful and calm like there was nothing wrong in the world. The cabins were bright in the sunshine and the fields glittered with dew.

By the time Annabeth’s van pulled up to Camp, the first van with all the injured demigods had arrived and the Apollo cabin and a few others had begun hauling them to the infirmary.

Chiron limped over towards them. “It’s good to see you,” he said looking relieved.

Annabeth offered him a small smile. “You too, Chiron. Are you alright?”

“Yes, yes, nothing a little healing can’t fix,” Chiron assured her. “I-” he stopped, staring at Ethan and Allegra Nakamura. “Ah. Ethan, wasn’t it? And who’s this?”

“My cousin,” Ethan said defensively, stepping in front of Allegra every so slightly.

“Allegra Nakamura,” she introduced herself.

Chiron raised his eyebrows at Percy.

“They’ll be staying at Camp to help me with my new project,” Percy said. “Uh, I kind of made the gods promise to honor the minor gods as well and, you know, we need some cabins for them now. I also made them promise to forgive the demigods who may have supported Kronos and they can come to Camp if they want.”

“Indeed,” Chiron said, studying Ethan and Allegra. “Nico?”

Nico started. “What? I mean, yeah?”

“I wanted to ask if you still wished to perform the funeral rites,” Chiron said seriously. “I would not blame you if you would rather I handle it, but we will be having the funerals once everyone gets settled back in and the injured are properly cared for.”

Nico shook his head. “I’ll do it.” He cast a glance towards the infirmary. “I should go get everything ready then. Uh, tell Will I’m not avoiding him. If he drags me into that infirmary, I’ll lose my mind.” He stalked off towards the amphitheater.

“We should probably get you two introduced to the Hermes cabin,” Annabeth told the Nakamura’s. “You’ll have to stay there until we can get your cabins built. So we’ll probably need to have a counselor meeting with all the existing soon to be head counselors of each new cabin to discuss plans and assigning numbers.” She could have kept listing things they had to do, but Percy interrupted her.

“Let’s just focus on one thing at a time please?” he asked hopefully.

Alex snorted. “You can say that again.”

“Right,” Annabeth said. She gave Ethan and Allegra sheepish looks. “Well, you already know Alex. Undetermined…” she trailed off.

It wasn’t until now that she realized something. Something very important.

Percy made the gods promise to claim their kids by the time they turned thirteen years old. But both Alex and Magnus were older than that. In fact, Alex was nearly fifteen and Magnus was fourteen. Maybe if they had been under thirteen they could have passed off their undetermined status as their godly parent waiting until the last minute to claim them, but them being older than thirteen? No way.

Perhaps Annabeth could ask Hermes to claim Alex and Apollo to claim Magnus? Doubtful that either god would grant that request given that none of the gods had exactly made it a secret they didn’t approve of the Greek and Norse crossover. Even if they  _ did _ want to agree to it, Zeus would likely punish them if they did, and therefore, Hermes and Apollo would refuse.

“Annabeth?” Alex said, waving a hand in front of her face. “Earth to Annabeth.”

Annabeth blinked. “What? Sorry. What was I saying?”

Percy gave her a concerned look. “You were saying Ethan and Allegra already knew fellow Hermes cabin occupant Alex.”

“Right,” Annabeth said, trying for a smile. “So you know Alex. Um, Ethan, you probably know a few of the other kids, but, Allegra, you don’t, so Percy and I can show you around.”

Percy slipped his hand into hers and as they were walking off towards the cabins with Ethan and Allegra in tow, he leaned over to whisper, “What’s wrong?”

“It’s nothing,” Annabeth whispered back. “I’ll tell you later after dinner. Promise.”

* * *

At the Hermes cabin, there were a few people laying on the bunks. Annabeth knocked on the doorway and peeked her head in.

“What’s up, Annabeth?” Connor yawned. “Is there ‘nother battle ‘cause don’t think I can fight ‘gain.” He was sprawled on his stomach on one of the lower bunks with one of his arms lolling off the side.

“No battle,” she said. “New campers for you. At least until the new cabins are built.”

Travis sat up. His arms and legs were bandaged and his eyes bloodshot, but he looked awake at Annabeth’s words. “New campers already? How did you manage that? Did you run into them on the way back or something?”

“Not exactly,” Ethan said, coming to stand next to Annabeth. “Hello, Stolls.”

Connor lifted his head up and then crashed back to bury it in his pillow. “You’re joking.”

“I remember you,” Travis said, squinting at Ethan. “I thought you had two eyes?”

Ethan gave him a dry look. “Your point?”

“Nothin,” Travis sighed. “Alright. Until the new cabins are built? Which god? Or goddess?” he added hastily.

“Nemesis,” Ethan said levely. His one eye studied the reactions carefully.

“Well, you know, yay, you get a bed because we are significantly lacking on campers due to, you know, runaways,” Connor said, though his voice was muffled by the pillow. “S’long as there’s no one’s stuff on the bed, you can have it.”

“Uh, this is Allegra,” Percy said awkwardly. He gestured to Allegra. “Um, Ethan’s cousin.”

“Daughter of Iris,” Allegra added.

“What is it with cousins?” Travis asked, glancing at Annabeth. “You and Magnus, now Ethan and Allegra? Speaking of Magnus, did he or Alex get claimed yet?”

Annabeth cleared her throat. “No, not yet. Um, the gods are probably still busy trying to get back on their feet after everything. Claiming is probably going to happen throughout the rest of the summer.”

Ethan didn’t look too pleased with her answer, but at least Travis seemed appeased for now.

They were really going to have to talk about what to do about the Norse elephant in the room later, but for now, hopefully no one would get too curious about Magnus or Alex’s heritage.

“Um, we should get you two cleaned up before the funerals,” Annabeth said to Ethan and Allegra. “I’ll show you where the showers are and we can get you some new clothes from the Camp store.”

* * *

Annabeth stared at the bodies wrapped in shrouds. Twelve belonged to campers with their varying shroud designs while fourteen silvery shrouds covered the bodies of Hunters.

The battle had been costly, any life lost was too many, but the number of losses had been reduced which was a small victory in any case.

Still, Annabeth could help but think if she only had more time to figure out a battle strategy, they could have saved much more. Maybe even figured out a way to hold the city just her and Percy. Or what if they had sent Nico much earlier to talk to Hades? If Hades, Demeter, and Persephone had been there from the beginning, could that have saved everyone’s lives?

Almost like he knew what she was thinking, Percy wrapped an arm around her. “Don’t blame yourself,” he said.

“How did you know what I was thinking?” she demanded.

Percy shrugged. “I don’t. But I can guess. I’ve seen that expression too many times in the mirror and someone always tells me not to blame myself, so I figure I’d return the favor.” He paused for a moment before continuing. “I doubted myself the whole battle. I didn’t know if bringing everyone to fight a three day battle was the right decision.”

“How else were we supposed to defend Olympus?” Annabeth asked.

“Exactly,” Percy said. “We needed help and our friends pulled through. War is terrible and I’d never want to force anyone into it, but on the other side of that, I would feel awful if I robbed someone of the chance to stand up for what they believed in. I mean, that’s all we’re doing, right?”

Annabeth leaned her head against Percy. “Yeah,” she said quietly as the pyres were lit and flames licked at the fabrics covering the bodies.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alex is right. Percabeth is so wholesome. <3
> 
> Anyway, Annabeth realizing the dilemma they are now faced with about Magnus and Alex getting claimed was pretty much my realization too. I started writing this and then I was like wait how old are they supposed to be? So they way I have it, I have Alex with a late birthday so Sept-Dec ish so she's almost 15 and then Magnus is 14 and turning 15 in January. So yeah.
> 
> Ahhhhhhh, next chapter is one of my favorites so look out for that tomorrow!


	34. Give a Girl Some Warning, Magnus! (Magnus)

WATCHING THE VARIOUS SHROUDS go up in flames brought back bad memories.

The flames in general weren’t usually bad enough to do that - he’d enjoyed far too many campfires for that to be true, but knowing that there were bodies inside some of the shrouds was too reminiscent of his mother’s death.

Magnus kept seeing the apartment in flames. Running up to the apartment with Annabeth by his side and falling from the fire escape watching the window explode.

Alex stood next to Magnus. She didn’t say anything, but her hand found his and she squeezed it tight like she knew what he was thinking about.

Magnus chanced a quick look at Alex. She was staring straight ahead into the flames, the fire reflecting in her brown and amber eyes. He looked away, back towards the pyre.

He barely knew some of them, but there was one person under a golden shroud that he did know. Alice.

Alice something. He never got around to learning her last name. Maybe he should have asked her instead of blabbing about himself.

Magnus realized with a start that Alice was the only one he really talked to about his and Alex’s true background. Thalia and Grover knew from when Zoe Nightshade asked Magnus to explain himself, but they just left it at that. Nothing else was said. Just that Frey was his dad and the Norse gods were real.

He hoped that wherever Alice ended up, it was the paradise she deserved. Elysium, if he recalled Annabeth’s long winded explanation so long ago in Fadlan’s Falafels.

Finally, the flames died down and they were all dismissed to the dining pavilion for dinner.

The whole walk to the pavilion, Alex didn’t let go of Magnus’s hand. He didn’t comment on it and neither did she. They walked in silence, hand-in-hand to the Hermes table where they sat down next to each other. The pair only separated when it was time to eat.

Alex peered at her empty cup. “Tizer,” she ordered.

The red beverage immediately filled her cup.

Magnus wrinkled his nose. “Gross, Alex.”

Alex took a long drink from her cup. When she set the cup down, her teeth were stained red and she looked like a vampire that had just finished feeding on the blood of innocents.

“You’re impossible,” he told her.

Alex stuck out her tongue which was just as red as the rest of her mouth. “Good.”

“Grover!” someone shrieked.

Magnus turned to see a tree nymph, Juniper, Grover’s girlfriend, give the satyr a flying tackle hug. Everyone cheered, and Magnus joined in, the good mood infectious. Alex whooped and flashed them a thumbs up.

Grover and Juniper, flushing red, went down to the beach to take a moonlit walk. Maybe to get away from the crazy demigods, maybe because they hadn’t seen each other in months. But Magnus thought it was probably a little bit of both.

Mrs. O’Leary romped around happily throughout the meal, eating everybody’s table scraps. She seemed to mostly hang around the Hermes table, likely because Nico kept tossing her bits of meat.

The new kids, Ethan and Allegra, warily ate their food as if the table would suddenly dump them to the ground. In any case, they seemed comfortable around Alex. Though Magnus didn’t know if that was a good or bad thing.

“Um, so I didn’t know you knew the funeral rites,” Allegra said awkwardly to Nico.

Nico shrugged. “I did them last year.” He tossed a hamburger patty to Mrs. O’Leary. “Funeral rites are interesting, I guess. I’ve been looking into them. Greek, Roman, Egyptian…” he trailed off, face looking like someone caught him with his hand in a cookie jar. He quickly put up an indifferent look, but Magnus made a mental note to ask him what that was all about.

“You two are going to the campfire, right?” Alex asked the Nakamura’s.

Ethan shrugged. “I suppose.”

“You’ll like it,” Magnus spoke up. “We sing about grandma putting on her armor.”

Nico rolled his eyes. “You guys are ridiculous.” He glanced up at something behind Magnus, but before he could turn around to see what it was, Nico stood up. “I have to go. Somehow I doubt anyone told Will I wasn’t avoiding him.” He headed towards the outside of the pavilion to meet up with Will before going in the direction of the campfire.

“Campfire time,” Alex grinned. “Come on, Maggie. What wonderful colors will the fire be today?” She faltered. “Unless you’d rather not go?”

Magnus appreciated the thought, but campfire was normal and honestly, he wanted one normal thing at the moment.

“It’s fine,” he said. “Let’s go.”

Alex, Magnus, Ethan, and Allegra got up to follow the slow trickle of campers heading towards the campfire. Alex slid her hand back into Magnus’s.

“I’ve been thinking about stuff,” Alex said as they took their seats near the back, about halfway up the amphitheater. There were maybe half the campers at the campfire, the other half opting to go back to their cabins to sleep.

“Yeah?” Magnus asked, hoping he was just imagining his sweaty hands.

If Alex noticed, she didn’t let on or let go. She traced a swirling pattern with her finger on her pants. “Yeah.”

They stared into the bright green flames while the Apollo cabin led the sing-along "Down By the Aegean". The green flames were the same color as Alex’s hair, Magnus noted absently.

“You missed your opportunity to declare how you feel about your friends to the bad guy,” Alex said.

Magnus pulled his hand back and crossed his arms. “I didn’t… besides the point… completely,” he sputtered, face burning. “Shut up, Alex.”

Alex grinned. “I am  _ never _ letting that go. I mean, it was a pretty big bombshell, Magnus.”

“That’s what Sam said.”

“She was right.”

“I thought you were going to cut my head off. Again.”

“I considered it.”

“I still wouldn’t take it back.”

Alex tapped her fingers against her leg. “Yeah. I know.”

If Ethan or Allegra were listening, they didn’t show it, which Magnus was grateful for. The two cousins had moved to sit two rows in front of Alex and Magnus.

“So I’ve pretty much taken a few years to mull over that declaration,” Alex continued. “And if the past few years have done anything besides try to kill us… I guess what I’m saying is that I have gotten plenty of space, Chase.”

Magnus looked at her. “Thought you didn’t just date any einherji with a pretty face.”

“You’re not an einherji, nor do you have a pretty face,” Alex informed him. “But… you’re not just anyone.”

“Well, neither are you.” Magnus’s eyes widened. “I meant, you’re not just anyone. Well, you aren’t an einherji either, but you do… well…”

Alex rolled her eyes. “Spit it out, Magnus.”

“You do have a pretty face,” he blurted. “And you always look good.” He was pretty sure his face was on fire.

“Why do you always have such random confessions?” Alex sighed. “It’s all very flattering, Magnus, but you gotta give a girl some warning.”

Magnus sputtered. “Seriously?”

Alex shot him a grin. “Seriously.”

Then she was kissing him and it was just as heartstopping as the kiss while they were freezing to death in the frozen tundra of Nifelheim or the one in his hotel suite when he was covered in chocolate. If it wasn’t for Alex’s hands on his shoulders, Magnus quite possibly would have fallen out of his seat.

Was it cheesy to say that he had been waiting for this moment for nearly three or so years?

Alex pulled back after what felt like a million years.

“You won’t have to think about this more, will you?” Magnus managed to ask.

Alex leaned closer. “Do you want me to?”

“Not really.”

He was about to kiss Alex again when a voice interrupted them.

“Haha! Finally!” Percy shouted, pumping his fist in the air. “I think the lovebirds need to cool off!” There was something like triumph in his voice as he said this.

Annabeth elbowed her boyfriend’s ribs, but the damage had already been done.

"The canoe lake!" Connor shouted.

A huge cheer rose up from the demigods, much to Magnus’s distress. His face was definitely red and a quick look at Alex proved that her cheeks were flushed a light pink, but she was laughing as the campers hoisted her and Magnus into the air and carried them down to the docks.

Magnus landed in the water with a loud splash. He sputtered and wiped the water from his eyes, looking around for Alex. Above him, he spotted a pink and green hummingbird hovering just out of reach.

“Alex!” he shouted.

The hummingbird became a small whale that flopped into the water next to Magnus, splashing him in the face. He could hear the Stolls shouting out a diving score amidst the cheering of the other campers.

Alex came up treading water, her soaked green hair plastered to her face. She paddled over and sent a wave of water crashing into Magnus.

“You and your public confessions,” she said.

“Me?” Magnus protested. “You’re the one who said you were done thinking about it at the campfire.”

“I did, didn’t I?” Alex sighed.

“Yep,” Magnus said. He wrapped an arm around her, pulled her close, and kissed her for all of Camp Half-Blood to see.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I did promise you guys some FierroChase, did I not? Ahhh, I was so excited to write this chapter and finally make it official.
> 
> Throughout this whole series, Percy was absolutely waiting for either FierroChase or Solangelo to happen to pull this little stunt.
> 
> Oh Magnus with the random love confessions. I love that.


	35. Hamilton Quotes Nico di Angelo (Nico)

THE WHOLE CAMP WAS BUZZING with the news of Alex Fierro and Magnus Chase kissing at the campfire and getting thrown into the lake. One might have thought that all the warm and gooey feelings that brought up would make others more receptive to not forcing anyone to stay in the infirmary against their will, but such was life.

The morning after, Will had marched into the Hermes cabin and in no uncertain terms had informed Nico that he was required to spend at least one full day resting in the infirmary or face the wrath of the Apollo cabin’s infamous rhyming curse.

Nico had chosen the safe option and sullenly followed Will into the infirmary. Once upon a time he might have challenged Will’s willingness (no pun intended) to actually perform said curse on Nico, but after the second time Will had done so, Nico decided it was better to quit while he was ahead.

“Tomorrow morning you can go back to the cramped quarters of the Hermes cabin,” Will promised him.

Nico flopped back onto the infirmary bed. “It’s not even that crowded, Will,” he said. “And I don’t need rest, okay? And if you’re only doing this so I spend time with you, then I already told you I was taking care of the funeral preparations because Chiron asked if I wanted to perform the rites-”

“Nico,” Will interrupted. “I’m not doing this because of that. You did some serious Underworldy magic the past two days and I am not going to let you fade away because of that. Okay?”

Nico sighed. “Okay.”

“Good,” Will said brightly. “I just have to change a few bandages and then I’ll be right back with some breakfast for us. Pancakes or waffles?”

“McDonalds.”

“Well,  _ I _ want waffles, so waffles it is,” Will said. He left Nico and went over to one of the beds further down that had a girl, maybe a Huntress, occupying it.

Nico leaned back against the back of the bed and closed his eyes. It was going to be a long 24 hours.

“Not surprised to find you here,” a voice said.

Nico peeked out of one eye to see Michael Yew standing next to his bed.

“Yeah, well, it wasn’t really my idea,” Nico said. “Blame Will.”

“He cares about you,” Michael said.

Nico rolled his eyes. “What do you want, Michael?”

“I came to apologize,” Michael said. Each word was slightly less forced than the last, but it was painfully obvious that Michael didn’t like having to apologize. “About how I treated you after Lee died.”

Nico raised an eyebrow. “What?”

“I mean, you  _ did _ manage to get three gods to help us,” Michael mumbled. “Including your dad, so I guess Hades isn’t that bad and neither are you. What I’m trying to say is that maybe I judged you a little harshly and I’m sorry. I never really took the time to get to know you before I judged you based on your dad.”

“Thanks,” Nico said. He gave Michael an awkward smile. “I, uh, really appreciate that.”

Michael nodded. He stood there for a while, not really knowing what to say or do next.

“I’m not very good with people,” Nico admitted. “Or…” he waved a hand haphazardly in Michael’s direction. “You know,  _ emotions _ . Heartfelt apologies. Whatever.”

“Neither am I,” Michael said. “The, uh, the apology part.”

“Kind of figured that,” Nico said ruefully. “But, I’m willing to start over. Maybe not friends, but… not enemies.”

Michael looked relieved. “Not enemies is fine. Just… be good to my brother.”

Nico was sure his face was pink. “I’ll try my hardest not to strangle him when he confines me to the infirmary.”

Michael snorted. “Good luck with that.” He moved off quickly towards the other end of the infirmary to go talk to Kayla.

Will wandered back over holding two plates of waffles and various fruits. “I hope I didn’t miss an argument between you and Michael.”

Nico took one of the plates. “We were just talking. He apologized for last summer actually. I think I’m really starting to grow on him.”

“Good,” Will said, taking a bite of his waffle. “Glad you’ve got the sibling approval.”

Nico paused. “I have to leave eventually. Every so often at least. Soon. I don’t know if I can even chance being back here after December.”

“I could go with you.”

“How do I explain to my father that you know about California?”

“I could be there when he tells you,” Will suggested.

Nico gave him a small smile. “I wouldn’t mind having you with me, but you can’t leave Camp Half-Blood. They need you here. But I’ll be back to visit you. Advantages of having a whole cabin to myself.” His face went red, realizing what he said. “I meant to talk,” he said quickly. “Not anything else. Just talk and… and hang out,” he finished weakly.

Will’s face was pink, but his expression was amused. “Just talking. Got it. In an empty cabin. Just us. Talking.”

“Shut up,” Nico hissed.

Will laughed. “Okay, okay.”

They ate the rest of their breakfast.

“How are you?” Nico asked finally.

Will tilted his head. “What do you mean?”

“Alice.”

“Oh,” Will said. He looked down at his plate. “Well, I don’t know. I mean, she was already dead. It’s just a matter of getting used to it again.”

“That’s healthy,” Nico snorted.

Will put his plate on the cabinet next to Nico’s bed. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“It means you don’t get to skip the grieving process just because you’ve already mourned her death once,” Nico said. “It’s not healthy. I tried that with Bianca and you are the one who helped me get through it. Let me help you now?”

Will stared at the sheets on Nico’s bed before taking a slow, shaky exhale. “Okay.” He sniffed. “I guess I’m not okay then. I thought I could save her, Nico. I should have been able to save her. I had the knowledge to save her and I failed her.”

“You tried to save her,” Nico said. “Alice knew that. I know that. And you didn’t fail her. She easily could have let Magnus try to heal her and maybe it would have worked or maybe she still would have died. But that would have left you with one less healer that could have saved more lives. Alice knew that too. She was a lot like you, Will. You two put everyone else before yourself no matter what.”

“It’s my job to worry about everyone else,” Will protested.

“It’s your job to heal injuries,” Nico corrected. “And you do. But you also make sure that everyone else is taken care of before yourself. I didn’t say it was a bad thing. I mean, it is when you’re running on an hour of sleep, but…”

Will grinned. “I guess that is pretty bad.”

“Well, you look very heroic when you’re running around healing people,” Nico said, looking down the bed to avoid Will’s eyes.

“Is that why you come around the infirmary sometimes?” Will teased.

“Shut up,” Nico said.

Will laughed. The sound was so pure and happy that Nico couldn’t bring himself to snap at his friend. The corners of his mouth twitched upward and soon Nico found himself laughing alongside Will.

“Thanks,” Will said when they finished laughing.

Nico shook his head. “You’re a dork.”

“You’re the dork, you dork.”

“If I’m a dork, then what does that make you?”

“Not a dork.”

“Dork.”

They sat in comfortable silence for a while after that just listening to the sounds of friends coming in and chatting with the injured demigods or the other Apollo kids wandering around, checking on the various patients.

“You know in some ways, I’m glad it was Alice,” Will finally said.

Nico looked at him quizzically. “You’re glad?”

“Well, yeah,” Will said. “I already lost her before and I survived. I was okay. But if she lived and someone else died… I don’t think I could have lived with that. And I would never be able to tell her what happened. I always hoped that one day I could tell my siblings what we did, but if I had to face Alice and say that someone else, say Connor Stoll, died in her place, I don’t think she would ever forgive me for that.” He gave Nico a small smile. “So I’m glad it was our sisters and not someone else’s.”

Nico thought about that. “You’re right. You know, a wise man once said, ‘Death doesn’t discriminate between the sinners and the saints. It takes and it takes and it takes, and we keep living anyway. We rise and we fall and we break and we make our mistakes. And if there's a reason I'm still alive when everyone who loves me has died, I'm willing to wait for it.’”

Will frowned. “Who said that? I swear I’ve heard that before.” He gave Nico a dry look. “You’re quoting Hamilton?”

“Actually,” Nico said matter-of-factly, “I don’t believe Hamilton has come out yet; therefore, when it does, it will be quoting me.”

Will shook his head. “I knew it was a bad idea to let you buy us all tickets to go see that.”

“Wow, not my fault that Lou Ellen, Austin and I were the only ones who enjoyed it,” Nico said. “You and Kayla and Cecil were off being party poopers.”

“This is as bad as you and Lou Ellen’s Harry Potter obsession,” Will said.

Nico crossed his arms. “Shut up, muggle.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I honestly have no idea why, but I headcanon Lou Ellen as a major fangirl; Lou Ellen and Nico as Harry Potter fans; and Lou Ellen, Nico, and Austin as Hamilton fans. In my chat fic there is an astounding number of times Harry Potter, AVPM, and AVPS is referenced. Anyway, that's being reflected into this story.
> 
> Ahhh, tomorrow I finish posting this story. I'll be posting Chapter 36 and the Epilogue since the Epilogue is so short. After that, I will be able to start posting The Sum of Our Choices: The Lost Hero. I'm really excited, I love this series and honestly I look forward to posting chapters every night.
> 
> Also? One more month ish until Tower of Nero comes out and I can't wait! Kind of nervous because, you know, the whole "is Will going to die?" thing is freaking me out, but I'm also super excited to read it. I'm currently working my way through all the books to finish my reread by the time the book comes out. I'm on the Battle of the Labyrinth now.
> 
> Anyway, I kind of hope that the "fourth wheel" of the quest that dies is going to be Lester. Like he sacrifices himself for the heroes and that's the last step to earning back his godhood. I feel like that would show how much he's grown since the selfish god-turned-mortal from Hidden Oracle to the remorseful mortal from Burning Maze and then to the selfless hero in Tower of Nero. Like that's the only possible outcome I can see because everyone is saying that if Will dies then that completely ruins Nico's character arc.
> 
> So yeah, that's my thoughts on that.


	36. The Magnus and Alex Problem is Messy (Percy)

ANNABETH HAD SOME ALARMING things to say to them. She hadn’t told him what it was after the bonfire like she’d promised, so Percy had to wait until Will let Nico out of the infirmary to hear about what was up.

“When I was giving Ethan and Allegra an introduction to the Hermes cabin, I realized something,” Annabeth began. “We made the gods promise to claim all their kids by the age thirteen. However, Magnus and Alex are both over the age of thirteen and there is no way they are getting claimed at Camp Half-Blood anytime soon.”

Alex frowned. “I didn’t think about that.”

“Well,” Magnus began awkwardly. “Um, I was going to talk about this with Alex first, but since you’re bringing it up now…” He took a breath. “I was thinking about going back to Boston.”

Annabeth looked startled. “What? Why? Please tell me you aren’t going to live with Randolph.”

“Randolph wasn’t that bad,” Magnus said. “He… he made some questionable choices, but maybe I can fix that. And, no. I wasn’t planning to go live with him. It would kind of suck after all this, but I thought about living back on the streets.” He cast an uncertain look at Alex.

Alex, who Percy was fairly certain was male right now, looked like he was mulling it over. “It would solve the problem of us not getting claimed,” he said. “But we could always figure out something with Chiron. Maybe we could have two Greek gods claim us?”

“I thought about that too,” Annabeth said. “Hermes for Alex and Apollo for Magnus, but… I don’t think Zeus would approve and I doubt either of them would go against Zeus right now.”

“Well what about Poseidon?” Alex suggested. “Doesn’t he have descendants who can shapeshift? If he claims me, would Apollo claim Magnus?”

“If Poseidon claimed you, we’d have a very big mess,” Will said. “Even though there isn’t an oath anymore, that would still be Poseidon claiming to have broken it twice.”

Alex let out a breath. “Yeah. I just… I like it here.”

“I do too,” Magnus said quietly.

Alex looked at Magnus. “I think we should figure this out. What we’re going to do next and everything. We should talk.”

Magnus nodded. “Yeah.”

* * *

The day wasn’t without its upsides though. Percy and Annabeth waited at the top of Half-Blood Hill for Rachel Elizabeth Dare to pull up and hop out of a taxi.

“I’m so glad you’re not dead!” Rachel said, giving them a big hug. “I cannot believe you fought a giant war and all I did was paint beaches and sunsets.”

“Beaches and sunsets sound better than fighting in a giant war,” Percy grimaced. “Uh, right. We have to let you in the borders so…”

“I, Annabeth Chase, give you, Rachel Elizabeth Dare, permission to enter Camp Half-Blood,” Annabeth said.

Percy was impressed. “Wow, that was a lot more formal than what you gave Tyson.”

“The camp was under attack when I let Tyson in,” Annabeth said. “I didn’t exactly have time for all the formalities.”

“Still,” Percy grinned. He looked at Rachel. “Let’s take you to meet Chiron. He’ll be able to explain everything. Probably.”

Rachel raised an eyebrow. “Probably. Oh, thanks. That makes me feel much better.”

Annabeth rolled her eyes at Percy. “I questioned Alex’s abilities to give pep talks, but maybe I should be questioning your’s.”

* * *

Chiron was waiting for them at the Big House. He had a grim look on his face.

“Chiron, this is Rachel,” Percy said. “Rachel, this is Chiron.”

Rachel looked awestruck. “Um, nice to meet you.”

“And you, my dear,” Chiron said. He fixed Percy and Annabeth with a look. “I am not sure I approve of this.”

“Rachel helped us during the war,” Annabeth said. “She had visions of things and she warned us about things that hadn’t even happened.”

“They said you could help me,” Rachel said nervously.

Chiron inclined his head. “I will try. Percy, Annabeth, would you wait outside while we talk?”

Percy gave Rachel a reassuring look. “Sure thing. Don’t worry, Rachel.”

He and Annabeth left the Big House and sat down on the steps to wait.

“Are you sure this was a good idea to bring her here?” Annabeth asked him.

Percy nodded. “Yeah. Rachel deserves to know what’s going on with her.”

They sat in silence for a while before Annabeth asked something that Percy knew had to have been weighing on her mind for most of the day.

“Why would Magnus want to leave?”

Percy shrugged. “I don’t know.”

“I mean, he and Alex are safe here and I’m his cousin,” she continued. “Even if we had to figure out some explanation for why they aren’t getting claimed, isn’t that better than what they would be facing if they went back to Boston?”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean, Randolph is there and he’s working with  _ Loki _ ,” Annabeth said. “And neither of them have a place to go to. You heard what Magnus said, he was just planning to go back to living on the streets. How can I let my cousin do that when he could stay here?”

Percy thought for a moment. “I don’t know. But you can’t force him to stay either. Magnus and Alex have their own fight to fight and all we can do is help them when the time comes just like they helped us.”

A green light hit the ground outside the Big House and the two stood up, weapons drawn.

“It’s happening,” Annabeth breathed.

They looked up to see green light shooting out of the windows in the attic. Mist swirled out of the cracks. 

The house rumbled. The door flew open and green light poured out. Rachel, with the help of Chiron and Apollo, walked out to meet Percy and Annabeth. A warm, musty smell of snakes followed her. Mist curled into a hundred smoky serpents, slithering up the porch columns, curling around the house.

All around the Camp, campers had stopped what they were doing to watch the display.

The smoke cleared. The Mist faded away.

Rachel was pale as she was lowered to sit on the steps Percy and Annabeth had vacated.

“Ow,” she said, pressing her hands to her temples. “The visions—they're a little disorienting."

Percy exchanged a look with Annabeth.

Apollo drifted down from the porch. "Ladies and gentlemen, may I introduce the new Oracle of Delphi." He sounded insanely proud as he announced this in an extremely loud voice for all of Camp Half-Blood to hear.

Rachel offered a weak smile, but then her eyes widened. “Oh no—"

"It's starting," Apollo announced.

Rachel doubled over like someone had punched her. Then she stood up straight and her eyes glowed serpent green. When she spoke, her voice sounded tripled—like three Rachels were talking at once:

“ _ Seven half-bloods shall answer the call. _

_ To storm or fire, the world must fall. _

_ Delivered for wisdom on Rome’s wings, _

_ Ones prepared with knowledge of all things. _

_ An oath to keep with a final breath, _

_ And foes bear arms to the Doors of Death. _ ”

At the last word, Rachel collapsed. Percy and Annabeth rushed to catch her and help her to the porch. Her skin was feverish.

"I'm all right," she said, her voice returning to normal.

Chiron and Apollo exchanged worried looks.

"I believe," Apollo said, "that we just heard the next Great Prophecy."

“The next Great Prophecy?” Rachel repeated. “I don’t even remember what I said.”

"No," Apollo mused. "The spirit will only speak through you occasionally. The rest of the time, our Rachel will be much as she's always been. There's no point in grilling her, even if she has just issued the next big prediction for the future of the world." There wasn’t the same light tone as the first time Apollo had said this. Percy had a feeling it was something to do with the third and fourth lines.

Apollo cleared his throat and gave them a blinding smile. “But I wouldn’t worry too much. The last Great Prophecy about you took almost seventy years to complete. This one may not even happen in your lifetime."

It was like everyone just wanted to tempt fate.

“Now, she needs rest,” Apollo continued. "Chiron, I don't think the attic is the proper place for our new Oracle, do you?"

"No, indeed." Chiron looked relieved that Rachel was still apparently sane. “Rachel may use a guest room in the Big House for now, until we give the matter more thought.”

"I'm thinking of a cave in the hills," Apollo mused. "With torches and a big purple curtain over the entrance… really mysterious. But inside, a totally decked-out pad with a game room and one of those home theater systems."

Chiron cleared his throat loudly.

"What?" Apollo demanded.

Rachel sent them a smile before following Apollo into the Big House.

* * *

The following day was a counselor meeting.

“We need to assign cabin numbers for the new cabins,” Annabeth said at the beginning of the meeting. “I don’t want to offend any of the gods or goddesses, but I figured we should start with the ones that actually have kids here right now.”

“That would make sense,” Silena agreed.

“I would like Cabin 13,” Nico said. “Unlucky 13 and all that.”

Travis and Connor snickered.

“Of course you do,” Thalia said, shaking her head. “Alright. Hades in 13. What about the rest? Which goddesses and gods?”

“Iris,” Percy said, pointing to Allegra. “Hypnos, Nemesis, and Nike. For now that is.”

“14, 15, 16, 17,” Clarisse said in a bored voice. “Are we done?”

“Would it kill you to show a little more respect?” Michael snapped.

Clarisse glared at him. “I don’t know. Would it kill  _ you _ to admit you were wrong?”

“ _ I _ wasn’t wrong.  _ You _ were wrong.”

Rachel, who had been absently doodling on her hand, looked up. “What are you talking about?”

“It’s nothing,” Percy said pointedly. Honestly, if Clarisse and Michael decided to get into arguing about the stupid chariot again, he would throw them both off a bridge.

“Prissy, you said we would talk about the chariot after the war,” Clarisse growled. “It’s after the war.”

Ethan gave Percy an incredulous look. “Are you talking about the flying chariot? Wasn’t that stolen weeks ago?”

“Oh, look,” Percy said, false enthusiasm in his voice. “A child of Nemesis, goddess of balance.”

“Jackson,” Ethan said dangerously.

“Alright, Ethan,” Percy said loudly. “What should we do if two different cabins are claiming the chariot? Apollo cabin stole it from the Titan army, but Ares cabin led the raid. Who gets the chariot in your expert opinion?”

Ethan glared at him with his one eye. “In my expert opinion, it would be the demigods the chariot was stolen from.”

Clarisse and Michael sputtered protests.

“But that seems unlikely to be possible, so I would say it belongs to the siblings of those demigods first,” Ethan said. “The ones at Camp, anyway.”

“Which would be who?” Clarisse asked through gritted teeth.

Ethan shrugged. “Oh, well, it was mostly Alabaster Torrington and Alaina White. Son of Hecate and daughter of Iris. Since there aren’t any Hecate kids yet,” he gestured to Allegra. “Iris kids.”

Allegra shrank under the looks from Clarisse and Michael. “Um, can it just be a camp owned chariot?” she asked in a small voice.

Rachel pointed to Allegra. “Now  _ that _ seems fair.”

Most of the campers murmured an agreement, but Rachel’s assessment seemed to have bought herself some attention.

“So this new prophecy,” Katie began curiously. “It’s the next Great Prophecy?”

Chiron nodded. “After the completion of each Great Prophecy, the Oracle issues the next Great Prophecy. However, as Lord Apollo said, it’s not anything we have to worry about right now. Rachel would be able to tell us if it was beginning.”

Rachel looked surprised. “Wait. Like, I’ll just know?”

“Assuming it happens within your lifetime, yes,” Chiron answered.

Castor raised a hand. “Um, are we allowed to know what the prophecy says?”

Rachel glanced at Chiron who nodded to her. She cleared her throat. “It goes:  _ Seven half-bloods shall answer the call / To storm or fire the world must fall / Delivered for wisdom on Rome’s wings / Ones prepared with knowledge of all things / An oath to keep with a final breath / And foes bear arms to the Doors of Death. _ ”

“Oh, well the world’s ending,” Thalia said flatly. “That’s great. Drinks on me!”

Michael frowned. “Prophecies have lots of meanings. We all thought Percy was going to die, but it wasn’t him the prophecy was talking about. Besides, the prophecy isn’t going to happen yet. Bad things happen when you try to interpret a prophecy. Especially before its time.”

On that happy note, the meeting ended.

* * *

The rest of the summer went by way too quick for Percy’s liking. It was only two weeks, but it felt more like a few days.

Construction for the new cabins had begun and new demigods kept arriving. Soon, they were planning cabins for Hebe, Tyche, and Hecate.

Magnus and Alex hadn’t said anything about their plans for staying or leaving yet, and Percy knew Annabeth was reluctant to ask.

Mostly, the group just spent their days helping build the new cabins and walking around Camp, taking in the sights of the new additions.

Nico’s cabin was dark as ever. He decided to stick with the solid obsidian walls and skull decor, but he promised that he would be remaining at Camp long enough to make sure the interior was improved.

“I’m not a vampire,” he’d said.

Will had laughed at him. “Could have fooled me.”

Next to Nico’s Hades cabin was the Iris cabin. There were only two occupants at the moment, Allegra Nakamura and Butch Walker, but it looked bright and homey. Everything about the cabin was as colorful as the rainbow Iris was the goddess of.

Ethan was the only Nemesis kid for now, and his cabin looked like a cross between the Hades and Ares cabins with the red and black color scheme. The broken wheel PacMan symbol of Nemesis was hung over the doorway.

* * *

The last night of camp was the bead ceremony.

The bead showed the Empire State Building, and etched in tiny Greek letters, spiraling around the image, were the names of all the heroes who had died defending Olympus. Percy proudly slipped the bead onto his necklace next to the Labyrinth bead.

"Never forget this summer!" Chiron told them. He had healed remarkably well, but he still trotted in front of the fire with a slight limp. "We have discovered bravery and friendship and courage this summer. We have upheld the honor of the camp."

Everyone cheered.

"And now," Chiron said, "early to bed! Remember, you must vacate your cabins by noon tomorrow unless you've made arrangements to stay the year with us. The cleaning harpies will eat any stragglers, and I'd hate to end the summer on a sour note!"

“I want cleaning harpies at the Hotel,” Alex muttered under his breath.

Magnus sighed. “Of course you do.”

“Tuesday is free-for-all, Wednesday is siege warfare, Thursday is dragons,” Alex listed. “Why can’t we have cleaning harpies trying to eat us on Mondays or something?”

Percy patted Magnus. “Good luck.”

“Thanks,” Magnus muttered.

* * *

The next morning, Annabeth and Percy stood at the top of Half-Blood Hill watching the buses and vans pull away, taking most of the campers back to the real world. A few old-timers would be staying behind, and a few of the newcomers, but Percy was heading back to Goode High School with Rachel and Annabeth would be attending a boarding school nearby.

Alex and Magnus met them at the top of the hill.

“We’re going back to Boston,” Alex announced.

Annabeth nodded. “I figured you would. Are you sure you don’t want to stay?”

Magnus smiled ruefully. “We would, but there’s some friends we have to meet up with.” He gave Annabeth a serious look. “Call us though if you need anything.”

Annabeth pulled her cousin in for a hug. “As long as you promise to do the same.”

“We’ll come back to visit,” Alex promised. “You won’t be getting rid of us  _ that _ easily.”

Percy grinned. “Aww, got my hopes up, Fierro.”

“I don’t suppose I’ll see you at any of our dad’s work stuff?” Rachel asked.

Alex shook her head. “No. Probably not.”

“It was good seeing you again, Alex,” Rachel said. “Make sure you say hi when you come back.”

“Cross my heart,” Alex said.

“How are you getting back to Boston?” Percy asked.

Magnus tapped the pendant. “Trade secret. Wish us luck with the squirrel.”

“Squirrel?” Percy asked as the two Norse demigods ran down the hill and into the mortal world.

“Ready to go?” Annabeth asked Percy and Rachel.

Rachel shouldered her bag. “Yep. I am a little worried though. What if somebody asks what's on the next math test and I start spouting a prophecy in the middle of geometry class? The Pythagorean theorem shall be problem two… Gods, that would be embarrassing."

“I wouldn’t mind knowing the answers,” Percy said.

Annabeth laughed. “You’ll be fine. Keep an eye on Percy for me though.”

“Someone has to,” Rachel agreed.

“I’m right here,” Percy protested.

Annabeth kissed his check. “I know.” She laced her fingers through Percy’s.

The guard dragon Peleus curled contentedly around the pine tree underneath the Golden Fleece and began to snore, blowing steam with every breath.

“I am  _ not  _ looking forward to the next prophecy,” Percy said.

“It might be a problem for another generation of demigods," Rachel pointed out.

Percy snorted. “Please. Since when are we that lucky?”

Rachel grinned. “Fair point.” She looked at Percy and Annabeth. “Well, race you to the road?”

“You’re going to lose,” Annabeth said. “We’ve been training for years - HEY!” she shouted as Rachel took off. “Cheater!”

Percy and Annabeth sprinted down the hill after her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The end! Well, except for the epilogue. That will be posted shortly.
> 
> Yeah, I sent Magnus and Alex back to Boston. It had to be done because they have to meet Blitz and Hearth. Going by the original timeline, Magnus would have met them between BotL and TLO. It's about a year after he should have met them at this point.
> 
> And Rachel's prophecy has changed! How with this affect the giant war?


	37. Epilogue

SHE WAS RUNNING down a crowded street. Bright lights assaulted her from the buildings and people around her murmured about kids these days.

Where was she? Nothing about this place looked familiar. No one around her looked familiar. She didn’t even know how she got here.

It was cold too. Not winter cold. If she had to guess, it was maybe October or November. The few trees she could see were all shedding their leaves.

She came to a halt in a park to catch her breath and think for a moment.

Wherever she was, it was in America. The people talking had clear American accents, and there were too many of them for it to be a touristy spot outside of America.

So it was definitely an American city. A big American city.

But still…

How did she get here?

She had no memory of arriving in the city. Suddenly she was just walking down the streets, as much a part of the crowd as the other thousands of people on the street.

“Are you alright, sweetheart?”

She looked up to see a couple standing next to her in concern.

“I’m fine,” she said. “Just resting.”

The couple didn’t look convinced, but they went on their way, wandering through the trees.

She took a deep breath. There was no way she could stay here for long. People would get suspicious.

So she decided that walking around the park while she tried to get her bearings would be the best solution. It was a big park and if she walked slow enough, she could take full advantage of that.

A few people passed her by. Some of them were discussing a construction project. She strained to hear the conversation. Maybe that could help her figure out where she was.

“-hope the Queensboro Bridge is fixed soon,” someone grumbled. “The tunnels are so crowded now.”

“They said by the end of the month, but who knows,” another said.

_ Queensboro Bridge _ . That was familiar. It was the name of a New York bridge.

At least now she had an idea of where she was. New York. Probably Manhattan. But why was she here?

The answer came to her the same time she bumped into someone going the opposite way.

“Sorry,” she mumbled.

The boy stumbled, but caught himself. “It’s fine,” he said, looking at her. His eyes widened. “Wait. Bianca?”

Bianca di Angelo froze. She looked at Percy Jackson fearfully before dashing away.

She was in Manhattan. She was close to Camp Half-Blood. She was close to  _ Percy Jackson _ . And she had no idea how she had gotten there.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well there you have it folks. That wraps up The Sum of Our Choices: The Last Olympian. And because I'm a sucker for posting lots of chapters in a very short amount of time, I will be posting the first chapter of The Sum of Our Choices: The Lost Hero.


End file.
